The Journey of A Thousand Miles
by HTTYD Warrior
Summary: After the battle with the Death, Hiccup and Astrid set out with their dragons on a journey to meet and befriend the species listed in the Dragon Manual, and gain information on them along the way. What starts out simple turns into an epic journey.
1. Chapter 1

Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III stared down at the copy of the dragon manual. Not the new copy he was helping create, the old one. The KOS, Kill on Sight, version. In his mind, he knew that the little information in this manual wouldn't do for his new version. The KOS version detailed the best way to kill dragons, only listing the bare minimum of facts. And it was so that his plan had formed.

It had begun simply enough…the dragons were their friends now, and the old manual was greatly outdated. Of course, who better than the first Viking to ride a dragon to fix it? And so, Hiccup had been commissioned to make the new manual. So, for a few months he'd studied the habits and rituals of the local dragons. Zipplebacks, Nadders, Nightmares, Terrible Terrors, and even the Night Furies were now detailed in the new version of the manual. But what about the other dragons? And so, the plan had formed in his mind. It was time for him to go abroad, to find the exotic species of dragon.

And so, it was in his room, at his desk that he sat, staring at the old manual, wondering if he should bring it with him. He was in the middle of packing for his trip. He had no clue how long it would last or the supplies he would need on the journey.

'The old manual had plenty of flaws, but it should be worth it in the end,' he decided, and swept it into his pack. He tied the bag shut and set it by the door.

'Still midday…' Hiccup thought. He was to leave tomorrow morning, assuming nothing delayed him. He decided to go for a walk through Berk, seeing as how it would be unlikely he'd see it again for sometime. As he left his home on the hill, he paused to marvel at the changes that had come about in the last six months.

Dragons and life with Dragons had changed the village, in most cases for the better. The bright scales brought colors to Berk, and had given the village a more festive air to it. Dragons now fed from the large torches, eating copious amounts of fish. Nowhere seemed to be safe from the touches of the Dragons. 'But there are some disadvantages…' Hiccup thought as he felt a squish under his foot. The dragons didn't seem to have a designated bathroom area.

Hiccup's musings had occupied him while he'd walked down from the hill, his prosthetic no longer bothering him. In the center of the village, a relatively new building stood. The Dragon Keepers Headquarters, a organization Hiccup had helped create. The Dragon Keepers were a group of people Hiccup had hand selected to help him care for the new influx of dragons. Fishlegs was among the first, and now, with Hiccup soon to leave, had taken over managing the organization, much to his delight.

"Fishlegs, I think you're going to have to do something about this waste problem!" Hiccup said, walking into the building and finding Fishlegs at his desk, paperwork strewn everywhere.

"Tell me about it!" Fishlegs exclaimed. "I'm already swamped trying to get more watering troughs built in the higher parts of the village, not to mention trying to find people that are willing to carry water up to them to be refilled, and-"

"Whoa, Fishlegs calm down!" Hiccup cut in. "Why don't you assign one of the Keepers to it? Get Gobber to modify a barrel or two so a dragon can carry it, and assign it to some of the larger dragons? I'm sure Spitelout wouldn't mind."

"That's…that's…well, that might actually work." Fishlegs sighed, head collapsing on the desk in front of him. "Why do you have to leave me with all this Hiccup? You're way better at it than me. And then you're taking Astrid with you…now who am I going to get to run air patrols?"

Hiccup grimaced slightly. It wasn't his idea to get Astrid to come along, but she had insisted, and in private, she had told him she couldn't be away from him for some large, unknown length of time, and that it wasn't fair for just him and Toothless to be going on the adventure of a lifetime.

Suddenly, one of Fishlegs assistants, one of the younger Vikings ran up and began to inform Fishlegs of a fire a surprised Nightmare had accidentally set in one of the new stables down by the docks. As Fishlegs rushed to get aid to the blaze, Hiccup made his exit, going to find Toothless.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

* * *

><p>Toothless was exactly where Hiccup had expected, sunning himself in the little bottom that they had first met in, resting up for the big day tomorrow. 'Or so', Hiccup told himself, 'that would be his excuse'.<p>

Hiccup sat down and leaned against the Night Fury's scaly back. There would be no moving him until he decided to get up, even though Hiccup needed to make the final, last minute, nit-picky tweaks to Toothless's new long distance saddle. It was one he had designed with comfort in mind, the padding on the seat doubled, with slots for a removable back rest that Hiccup had made after realizing he'd get tired of leaning forward all the time. The saddle had also been extended slightly to allow for more comfortable two person travel, though Astrid would be riding her Nadder, Bluebell. The straps that held the saddle on to Toothless had also been adjusted with more padding in areas that might irritate Toothless during long flights.

Along with Toothless's new saddle, Hiccup had also created a two set of pouches that slung over the sides of the saddle, giving more storage area than just Hiccup's pockets. A duplicate set and saddle had also been made for Bluebell. All this gear now sat inside the office at the forge. 'THE FORGE!'

"Toothless, get up buddy, we have to go meet Gobber! He told me he had something for us!"

The Dragon opened one eyelid, staring at Hiccup, closed his eye, then shook his head slightly.

"Toothless, if you don't get up, I'm going to start bathing in smoked eel." Hiccup threatened. The dragon opened both eyes and looked up at him, a hurt expression on his scaly face.

"Ruuurr," Toothless rumbled, standing up and stretching before allowing Hiccup to climb onto his back. They soared into the air, and in moments had landed outside the forge. Inside, Hiccup heard Gobber banging away.

"Hiccup, that you?" Gobber asked, turning as Hiccup entered the door. "Ah, yes it is. Not a moment to soon, aye?"

"Sorry about that, I had to convince Toothless to move." Hiccup said, and he heard an indignant snort from outside. Like it was his fault Hiccup was late.

"Well spirited he is." Gobber nodded to himself. He then set his massive had on Hiccups head, placing a helmet on him. Hiccup blinked in surprise. "It's your old helmet, I just made a few tweaks."

Hiccup removed the breast-hat from his head, and studied it. On the four sections the helmet was divided into had been painted red with the white skull, like Toothless's new tailfin. The remaining three were black.

"I guess this is some sort of symbol for me now?" Hiccup asked, never really understanding where it came from.

"It was something your Dad gave me. He said your mother drew it, and he thought you might like it." Gobber said, walking to the wall and unpinning a paper. There, in his hand, he held the spiked skull, tinged by red in the background. Hiccup took the page and admired it, before replacing it on the wall.

"I never knew. It certainly is interesting." Hiccup said.

"Indeed. But I have one more gift for ya." Gobber reached back to what he was working on. A long dagger with a dragon's head for the hilt was in his hand. "Only weapon you ever were decent with. It's going to be a matching set, but the other one will be ready tomorrow. I got a late start."

Hiccup admired the single dagger Gobber had forged. It was incredible. It seemed to be made for his hand. Then, his brain reminded him of something. Toothless might not like him carrying a weapon. He felt a sniff behind him.

"Raaagggghhh." Toothless gave a bellow of approval.

"Really?" Hiccup asked. The dragon gently nosed the dagger in his hand. "Alright."

"See, even your beastie knows you need some protection. If you don't stab yourself with it." Gobber laughed, a bellowing sound. "Now, go on, find that girl of yours. You've got a trip to go on tomorrow, and I don't need you in my way."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

* * *

><p>Hiccup did just that. He sought out Astrid at her house. She was in the middle of stuffing clothes in her pack when Hiccup entered, carrying her saddle bags.<p>

"Hi Astrid." He said. 'What a lame greeting…'

"Rrr…fit! Hi Hiccup." Astrid said, trying now to stuff a leather bound book into the swollen pack.

"You could use these, you know?" Hiccup asked, gesturing to the saddle bags he had custom made for Bluebell. "That's what I made them for."

"What are they?" Astrid asked, puzzled by yet another of his strange creations.

"Storage bags that hang over the sides of dragons."

"Like saddle bags on horses?"

"Exactly. I custom made these for Bluebell."

Astrid walked over to Hiccup and punched him on the arm. "That was for messing with Bluebell without telling me. And this is for the thoughtfulness." Astrid stepped forward and kissed him.

After a few seconds, she broke away, taking the saddlebags from Hiccups hands as he reveled in the afterglow of their lips meeting, utterly, blissfully happy. Astrid had to suppress the urge to giggle when she saw that face.

"Your welcome." Hiccup said, dreamy tone still in his voice. "So I suppose you're resolute about coming with me?"

"You know I'm not going to let you go out there by yourself. You'd get yourself killed. Besides, I doubt I could stop myself from following you after I got lonely."

"And how long would that take?" Hiccup asked, slyly, as he eased himself down on the bed.

"Oh…it depends on how fast I'd get asked out after you left." Astrid joked. Hiccup grimaced. He didn't like that idea. "Oh, don't give me that look. You know I'm joking."

"Oh sure. It's easy for you, oh Goddess of the sky." Hiccup said, rolling his eyes. Astrid silenced his sarcasm with a glare, then grabbed him by the shirt, kissed him, and threw him back down on the bed. He had the glazed look in his eyes again. She smiled.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

* * *

><p>The rest of the day flew by, and turned into night. Hiccup and Astrid were in the Great Hall, getting read to enjoy the feast prepared for them and their departure.<p>

"A toast!" Stoick bellowed. "A toast to my son, rider of dragons, and writer of instruction manuals!"

The gathered crowd laughed, and the feast began in earnest. Soon, a few musical Viking began to play a lively tune, and people began to dance. As the night wore on, and more alcohol was consumed, the mood became more and more boisterous.

Hiccup found himself pulled aside by Snotlout, who had clearly drank to much. He seemed to be sad, almost depressed.

"Hishcup…Hischup…lisshen." Snotlout slurred loudly in Hiccups ear. "While yur outsh there…give 'er a good one fer me, 'kay?"

"What…?" Hiccup asked, brows knitting together. The stench of Alcohol on his breath was overwhelming.

"Ya knowsh. Giv' Assshtrid a good ol' jurmpin' fer me. The old bumpy-OOF!" Snotlout doubled over as Astrid's fist struck him in the gut. Hiccup had flushed a bright shade of red, and it only worsened as he saw Astrid's pissed expression.

"Some people…" she said, locked her arm around Hiccups, and strutted off with Hiccup in tow, now utterly confused.

The celebration lasted well into the dark hours, but not for Hiccup and Astrid. They said goodnights outside the feasting hall (a long, passionate kiss) and headed off to their respective homes, Hiccup with the glazed look, still slightly red as he remembered Snotlout's comments, and Astrid with a happy, almost beaming look.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

* * *

><p>AUTHOR'S NOTES:<p>

Alright, so here's the first chapter of a long epic adventure story...So, read and review, and enjoy!

All uses of the name Bluebell are credit to: Vrenna Vrien or Enchantable on


	2. Chapter 2

Journey of a Thousand Miles: Chapter 2

'Early mornings are a pain.' Hiccup's brain battled the last holds sleep had over him. It had been one of those nights, filled with anticipation that makes your gut squirm and your body not want to sleep, wondering and worrying over what it will be like, this mighty upcoming event. It was the early hours of the new day that Hiccup had found himself in when sleep had finally taken him. And it was the early hours of that day's morning that his father had awoken him too.

"Rough night, ay?" Stoick the Vast rumbled as Hiccup struggled to keep his eyes open. Hiccup just nodded, basic motor skills like talking still beyond him. Stoick chuckled as Hiccup stumbled around, beginning to get dressed, before he exited the room.

Toothless entered not long after, again rousing Hiccup from his refuge under the covers.

"Fine…I'll get up!" Hiccup gasped, as Toothless mercilessly licked at him. This time, Hiccup dressed under the watchful eye of Toothless, then began to make final checks on the things he was bringing with him. He conveniently 'forgot' the breast-hat under one of his pillows, appreciating but not wanting to bring the token of his Viking-ness.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

* * *

><p>The dew was still fresh on the grass as Hiccup made his way down to the port. The sun hadn't been out but for maybe an hour, and yet the entire village already seemed to be stirring. There were quite a few men holding their head after the feast last night, and Hiccup couldn't suppress a evil chuckle when he saw Snotlout massaging his temples.<p>

Toothless let out a short grumble and nosed Hiccup, looking up. Above them, Astrid and her Nadder, Bluebell were circling. The pair glided to a landing at the docks, where a small crowd was beginning to gather. When Hiccup arrived there a few minutes later, Gobber walked up to him, beaming.

"The set is finished. Stayed up 'alf the night working on it, but I did get 'em finished." Gobber said, handing Hiccup a small bundle wrapped in cloth and bound together with a leather cord that was wrapped many times around it. Hiccup unwound the cord and unwrapped the cloth.

There were two of the dagger Hiccup had seen yesterday. About eight inches in blade length, and razor sharp, the weapons were a deadly. The cross guard was plain, except for the horned skull imprinted into it, while the hilt was something to marvel at. The grip of the blades were etched like individual scales that seemed to give more traction, while the pommel was a dragon head bearing a striking resemblance to the Night Fury standing beside him.

"This is…way more than what I expected. You did a lot of work since yesterday." Hiccup marveled.

"Weelll…what I showed you yesterday was more or less a prototype." Gobber said, thumping him on the back. "Oh yeah, here are the sheaths for them."

Gobber produced two leather cases, custom fitted to the daggers from his pockets. Hiccup slid them by their loops onto his belt, on either side of him, then sheathed the daggers, before securing the leather strap around the cross guard.

"Well, now if I lose a fight, it won't be because I didn't have the proper…er…tools." Hiccup said, poking fun at his own inability to swing anything without hitting someone or something, including himself. Toothless nosed him with a growling sound, as if to remind Hiccup that he would be there.

"Say…where's your helm-"

"Hiccup!" Astrid yelled. Hiccup looked towards the crowd that had gone from small to huge in a matter of minutes. Gobber chuckled, shaking his head.

"You best be goin' if you want to keep the rest of your limbs." Gobber said, patting him on the back and steering him on towards the waiting crowd.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

* * *

><p>As the ocean breeze blew through his hair, Hiccup recollected just how…abrupt the goodbyes had been. He'd clasped arms Fishlegs, telling him to do a good job, then moved on to his dad. It was one of the few times he'd hugged him in public. It was a quick, but brief motion, and then he'd handed Hiccup the map he had forgotten, the one detailing the entire known coastlines and islands. The one that was quite important to the journey Hiccup was about to leave on. He'd sighed, then added it to one of Toothless's saddlebags, where he could easily reach it later.<p>

Hiccup had then moved on to Gobber, thanking him again for the daggers, and clasping arms. He moved through a lot of his friends and acquaintances that way, until Astrid had grabbed him by the back of his shirt and dragged him over to Toothless. Not long after that, Stoick gave a speech and his blessing, and they were off. Heading out into the unknown to gather information about some of the world's most deadly creatures.

"Hiccup," Astrid called over. He looked to his left, in her direction. "Shouldn't you check the map and the compass?"

Hiccup blushed, murmured something, and then turned around and got the map and his compass out of the saddlebags. The map had pre-marked destinations on it that Hiccup was hoping to go to. The first was not far from Berk, about a hundred miles south. An easy day's flight for the dragons.

"We need to angle a bit more to the east, I think." Hiccup called over.

"You think, or you know?" Astrid yelled.

"Um, both!" Hiccup yelled back. Astrid just shook her head. No matter how hard he planned anything, Hiccup would always be…Hiccup.

Not long after their yelled conversation, land came into view in the form of a large rocky coast, dotted by trees. Hiccup had Toothless land there so they could stretch and relieve themselves.

When Astrid returned from her visit to the leafy lavatory, Hiccup suggested they ride together. Much to his delight, Astrid agreed. He got bored fast with nothing but the wind to entertain him.

After they were in the air again for a while, Astrid leaned against Hiccup and began to speak into his ear. "So…did you want to talk, or did you just want me closer to you?"

Hiccup turned red and flustered, only able to stutter over his words. "Well I er…um, was gonna-"

"What's your favorite color?" Astrid asked, after a laugh at his fumbling.

"Blue." Hiccup answered.

"Why?"

"Reminds me of-"

"If you say my eyes, I think I might push you off, because it will be the corniest thing you've ever said."

"Of blueberries." Hiccup finished, worried she might really push him off.

"Blueberries? I have to give you credit for the attempted save, but you could have done better." Astrid said, giving him a quick peck on the cheek. Hiccup turned red, glad she couldn't see his face. "Your turning red. Your ears are a tell."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

* * *

><p>About the time the sun was setting, according to the map, they were not far from a spot Hiccup had learned from some old writings, was popular with Timberjacks. He wanted to maintain a safe distance until they could assure any of the large dragons that they weren't a threat. It shouldn't be hard to do, with a Night Fury on their side.<p>

In a small clearing not far from the jagged coastline, Astrid had built a small fire. Hiccup was finishing unstrapping the last of the saddle bags from Toothless and Bluebell. When he finished, he dug around in the pouches until he found what he was looking for. The KOS Dragon Manual. He flipped through until he found the pages on Timberjacks.

"Razor sharp wings, large, extremely dangerous, kill on-"

"Hiccup, I need you to go fill up the water skins while I set up the tents." Astrid said, tossing three leather pouches at Hiccup.

"Okay. In a sec, let me finish-"

"Now, Hiccup! It'll be dark soon, and you never know what might be out there." Astrid commanded. She was right, he should do it while he still had daylight. Hiccup looked over at Toothless, but discovered that he was already curled up by the fire. Hiccup sighed, then trudged out of the camp with his slight limp.

It wasn't long before Hiccup came to a small stream that flowed with clear, icy water. He quickly filled the skins in the chilling water, and stood up. He backed up into a heavy, thick wall of fur that definitely hadn't been there before. The wall of fur released a deep, low growl. Hiccup dropped the skins, and proceeded to run as fast as he could, sure that he was running for his life.

"TOOTHLESS!" He screamed out into the night. Not far away, Astrid, Toothless, and Bluebell all jumped as they heard Hiccup yell out, and a monstrous roar not seconds after. Toothless was already on the move before the sound ended.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

* * *

><p>AUTHOR'S NOTES:<p>

Well...if you've just read through the story and come to this point, then congratulations. If you haven't, return to the top of the page and progress through the second chapter.

Well, sorry for the cliffhanger ending, but it's the most logical place to stop it. Besides, I gave you more than most. At least you know Toothless is on his way. But what could that big wall of fur be? Definitely not a dragon. There's no such thing as a dragon with fur.

P.S. Have you even notices the word Author has Thor in it? Now I feel godly. Lol.

All uses of the name Bluebell are credit to: Vrenna Vrien or Enchantable on


	3. Chapter 3

Journey of a Thousand Miles: Chapter 3

Hiccup remembered asking his dad about the south when he was little. His father had told him a story about a giant creature the size of a large dragon, covered in fur with razor sharp fangs and teeth, able to stand on its hind legs and tower over most men. Needless to say, Hiccup had gone to bed having nightmares about these giant animals his father had called bears. Sometimes they even breathed fire at him. Now, it felt like those nightmare had come to life, except now he was even more vulnerable, not having half a left leg and all.

He made it all of ten feet before he yelled for Toothless. The beast behind him roared, a snarling sound that twisted up Hiccup's gut even more. At eleven feet, the beast was on him, and with a slap of its mighty paw, sent Hiccup flying into a tree.

The air rushed out of his body, which was screaming in protest to the pain. His right shoulder seemed to be aflame, burning with a heat that threatened to char the rest of his body and turn him into ashes. He saw his vision waver, becoming black at the edges, and he realized he was threatening to pass out.

'No…gotta stay awake…Toothless…' Hiccup's brain whirred. He tried to push himself off the tree, but stopped when he was in a sitting position. It was as far as he could go. He looked up, eyes bleary and filled with pain. His head lolled to the side. The beast stood over him, arm raised for the death blow. Hiccup's eyes closed. 'Sorry Toothless. Sorry Astrid. Sorry Dad. This is how I'm going to end.'

"GROAARRR!" Toothless's roar split the night in two. Hiccups eyes flashed open, just in time to see Toothless hit the beast like a bat out of Hel. They went flying over a few feet, snarling and slashing at each other.

"Hiccup!" Astrid placed her hand on his shoulder, startling him. "By the gods…"

Her eyes were wide as she stared at him. His hair was matted with blood, and his arm was slashed open and bleeding. She grabbed him under the arms and began dragging him over to Bluebell, trying to get him out of the way of the two battling titans.

Suddenly the bear let out a loud snarl that died off abruptly with a wet gurgling sound. Toothless promptly let out a roar, releasing his hold on the beast's throat. It had all been over once he had a grip on the beast's throat. He wasn't going to let go of that, not while it was still living. Toothless slowly walked over to Hiccup, favoring his left foreleg.

"Hey…" Hiccup reached up and rubbed the dragon's snout. He felt something thick and warm on the dragon's face, then Hiccup's consciousness then faded away.

"Hiccup!" Astrid dropped to her knees beside him. She let out a sigh of relief when she realized he was still breathing. Toothless nosed the boy, wiping some of the blood onto him. "C'mon Toothless…lets get him back to camp."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

* * *

><p>"Ohh…my head." Hiccup stirred, his head pounding, and shoulder and arm throbbing. Slowly he sat up, marveling that he still seemed to be intact. Toothless, laying beside him, nosed him gently on the arm. "Hey bud."<p>

"Can't you do a simple task like filling water skins without screwing up?" Astrid asked. Hiccup recognized the tone in her voice. She had been worried, and was unsure how to react. So she went with the typical Astrid comment. He looked up at her. She was sitting on the other side of the embers of a fire, poking them with a stick, seemingly deliberately avoiding looking at him.

Hiccup glance over at his arm, which was bandaged with white fabric. "You know me, Hiccup the Screw-Up."

Hiccup chuckled, and Astrid looked over at him, worry in her eyes.

"Relax Astrid, I'm fine! Just a little sore." Hiccup said. Her face immediately composed itself to the normal mask.

"You're right, I've seen cat scratches deeper than that pitiful wound the bear gave you." she teased. Toothless gave a grating laugh beside Hiccup, who just shrugged.

"Got any water?" He asked, swallowing as he tried to quell his dry throat. Astrid pointed to one of the water skins an arms reach from him.

"I found that next to a stream not to far from here, along with some bear tracks. I was going to see where they led back to." Astrid said, referring to the water skin. "I think some moron must have gotten himself attacked."

"Haha, very funny." Hiccup pushed his blankets aside and tried to get to his feet, wobbling slightly. He was definitely sore, and probably would be for a while. Astrid came over to steady him, placing her arm around his waist. "So…lets go find some Timberjacks!"

"You can't be serious." Astrid said, eyeing him.

"And why not?"

"You- oh never mind." She sighed. Stiff and sore, he was still determined to see his mission through. Every bit the stubborn Viking his father was. "Remind me to hit you after your arm gets better."

"Will do."

Toothless lead the way into the forest, following the stream until it came to a pond, then veering left, smelling something.

"Alright Bud! Lead the way to the dragons!" Hiccup encouraged him. Toothless looked up at him and shook his head, then continued on the way. Bluebell, who was walking behind the two humans gave a growl, then sat down, refusing even at Astrid's urging to go farther. It wasn't long before they realized why.

The stench of death hung in the air. There were several trees felled, some fresh and others old. Toothless had led the way to a craggy rock feature, and judging by the scrapes and gouges on the earth, the sight of an epic battle. Toothless sat at the entrance to what seemed to be a shallow cave. Hiccup took all this in before he realized where the smell was coming from. Not to far into the trees, there was a rotting corpse of a dragon.

"That's awful." Hiccup said, wondering what could have done it. Then, nearby, he saw a tuft of dark brown fur, and knew his answer. The bear that had tried to kill him. It was a huge beast, and could have taken down the dragon with some effort. 'Probably got it by the wings or the tail first. That's about the best chance it would have had.'

"Grogaga." Toothless perked his ears up and peered into the cave. Hiccup looked at the dragon with concerned eyes. That cooing sound…could it be? He glanced over to Astrid. She was staring into the cave with wide eyes.

Toothless slowly advanced into the cave, giving a small growl, not a fierce one, but one that was more or less to announce himself. An answering coo came from within. Hiccup came up beside him, gently placing a hand on his side. Inside the cave, the light was dim and it took his eyes a moment to adjust. There was a slightly smaller dragon than the one outside, laying still in the corner, throat opened.

"H-hello?' Hiccup called out. He saw a movement beside the dead dragon's tail. A small, pointed head emerged, with two diminutive horns on top. Toothless let out a quiet coo as Hiccup held still. The tiny dragon slowly advanced towards them, walking slightly sideways. Hiccup heard Astrid let out a gasp. The tiny dragon was slightly bigger than a terrible terror, dark brown with a pointed face, a long tail, and claw like appendages on his folded wings. Toothless cooed again, lowering his head to the tiny dragons level.

'No, not tiny, it's a baby.' Hiccup corrected himself.

The baby dragon slowly extended his short neck and touched Toothless's snout. Toothless let out a quiet purr, and the baby dragon gurgled at him happily. Slowly, he raised his head to Hiccup who was standing on Toothless's left side. He hissed, and Toothless made a huffing sound before grumbling at the baby dragon. The dragon stopped and cautiously advanced to Hiccup. Palm and nose met, both keeping a safe distance from the other. It reminded the Viking of a long time ago with his first meeting with Toothless. The baby dragon then pushed his head against Hiccup's hand, making happy noises in his throat.

"Here you go little guy." Astrid slowly extended her hand to the dragon, offering a small scrap of dried fish. The dragon slowly sniffed it, then gobbled the whole piece down as fast as he could muster. She smiled, then turned to exit the cave. The baby dragon gurgled, following after her. Toothless and Hiccup exchanged a look, then followed after the pair.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

* * *

><p>"What about Jack?' Astrid asked, petting the baby Timberjack that was curled up in her lap, belly bulging.<p>

"Astrid come on. What about something original? Like…I don't know." Hiccup said, sighing. She had already decided she was going to keep the little dragon, probably even before she fed it the scrap of fish.

"What's wrong with Jack?" she asked, slightly irritated. She had tossed up about six names, and Hiccup hadn't liked any of them. Hiccup sighed before answering.

"Jack the Timberjack? Really?" he answered, sarcastically. Not that he'd done much better…Toothless and all.

"I guess that is kind of lame."

Silence stretched out between them, broken only by Toothless's sneeze.

"I don't know. It kind of grows on you." Hiccup said.

"So says the guy who named his dragon Toothless because he has retractable teeth." Astrid said. Bluebell chuckled behind her, a sound comparable to rocks grating on each other. Toothless gave a growl of irritation.

"So…" Hiccup said.

"I suppose it's as good as it gets." Astrid answered. She looked down at the baby dragon in her lap. "Welcome to your new family…Jack."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

* * *

><p>AUTHOR'S NOTES:<p>

Beware non-reader of the above. Below there be spoilers.

So...Welcome to the family, Jack! Jack the Timberjack, really original, but the debate Hiccup and Astrid had was actually more what played out in my mind when I tried to name the little guy. Which by the way, it is a guy. Just cause. Do I see some sharing of Astrid's attention problems in the future? Maybe...muwahahaha.

Oh, and sorry this was kinda short. I couldn't wait to let you guys meet Jack. Chapter 4 Coming soon!


	4. Chapter 4

Dreams of Astrid and dreams of talking dragons often filled Hiccup's sleep. Sometimes the two overlapped. His dreams that night had been such.

Hiccup had just entered his home, and had seen the rocking chair by the fire. He felt joy surge through his body as he slowly walked over to the rocking chair. Astrid was there, he felt it and knew it in his heart. Slowly, she stood from the chair, holding a light-blue cloth-wrapped bundle in her arms, feeding him with a bottle.

'Want to see your son?' she asked. He extended his arms, cradling the wrapped baby. He slowly unwrapped the cloth, and found a dragon staring back at him.

'Jack?' he asked confused.

'Dada!' the baby dragon cooed.

Hiccup sat bolt upright. "Ouch!"

The baby dragon had bit him on his big toe, and was slinking away out of the tent, long tail lingering behind him.

"Jack!" Hiccup cried.

"Oh, leave him alone. He just wants to play." Astrid called from outside. The smell of frying fish caught Hiccups attention, and he dragged himself outside. The baby dragon was lounging beside Astrid. Toothless and Bluebell were nowhere to be seen. He assumed that they had gone off to hunt.

It was the fourth day they had been at the camp since the bear attack. On the second, Toothless had led them to a valley in which two full grown Timberjacks dwelled. Hiccup had a hard time convincing the beasts that he was a friend to be trusted. The pair was wary, seeing as they had an egg to protect. After they met Jack however, it wasn't long before they trusted Hiccup enough that he could introduce Astrid and Bluebell.

On the third day, he had drawn out full sketches of both male and female. In an odd turn of events, the females were the more colorful of the sexes, a mottled green and brown, while the males were just brown. Another thing Hiccup had noticed was how the Timberjacks marked their territory. On the outskirts of the pair of Timberjack's territory the trees had been cut down in a circle all the way around them. As Hiccup explored even farther on the evening of the third day, he discovered twelve circles within ten miles. Today, he was going to the closest one.

Astrid handed Hiccup several strips of fried fish with a side of eggs. He had no clue where she got them, but it was guaranteed to be good. He could go meet more dragons after they ate.

Toothless soon returned, with Bluebell not long after, giving him an indignant look at being left behind. Toothless ignored her, and sat down on his haunches behind Hiccup, who was finishing his breakfast. Jack slowly began to sneak towards Hiccup, intent on stealing the last strip of fish. Hiccup hadn't seen the dragon, and threw the last strip back to Toothless, who caught it in his mouth. The baby dragon stopped and began to make a wailing sound.

"Hiccup!" Astrid yelled, suspecting he did something.

"What?" Hiccup jumped, shocked. He heard Toothless giving a throaty laugh behind him, and realized the dragon must have done something. "No! Bad Toothless! Bad dragon!"

Toothless looked abashed by the treatment he was receiving. He had done nothing wrong!

"Now give him a piece of your fish." Hiccup ordered. Toothless flattened his ears back and turned away from Hiccup, nearly swiping him with his tail. The bawling baby dragon continued his wailing.

Then, much to the humans' surprise, Bluebell stood at stepped towards the little dragon. Hiccup watched, slightly on edge. He didn't think she'd try and hurt Jack, but she had largely ignored him when he'd first arrived.

Jack stopped wailing and stared up at the Nadder. A gagging sound of sorts came from her throat as her eyes rolled up, and seconds later, an undigested fish head lay by his paws. He gurgled happily and began to chew on it. Hiccup looked over to Astrid as her dragon retreated. She looked just as shocked as he was, and just shrugged when he caught her eye.

* * *

><p>It really did surprise Hiccup just how fast news could spread. The three Timberjack colonies he visited that day seemed to be expecting him. The first, a lone, male dragon, had greeted the group with a roar that reminded Hiccup of the Nightmares greeting their riders. A roar of happiness or joy. When Hiccup had looked utterly puzzled, Toothless had stood up on his hind legs and pawed the air in front on him, before setting back down and nosing Hiccups bandaged arm.<p>

"The bear?" Hiccup asked. Toothless grumbled a sound that Hiccup took to be 'Yes.'

The second colony was a family of three dragons. The male was much larger than the female, indicating his age. He also bore a scar across his right eye, and was missing about a foot from his tail. He constantly nosed Hiccup about, seemingly eager to show him everything about his home. The female with him was about the size of Jack's mother, and seemed indifferent to the visitors, though she did grumble occasionally when the younger dragon in her care wandered out of sight. The younger dragon was about twice the size of Jack, and was female. Jack seemed fascinated by her, and followed her everywhere when they'd visited.

The third 'territory' they visited that day was a dwelling of two elder dragons. They were even older than the scarred dragon they had met previously. Toothless sat attentive, seeming to listen to the old Timberjack, as he growled and grumbled. The elder female that lived there was happily playing with Jack, who chased her tail back and forth as she swished it. Bluebell and Astrid had long since went back to camp. Bluebell hadn't seemed happy with all these strange dragons being around Astrid, which the Viking took to mean she was being protective. Hiccup just thought she was jealous.

When they flew back to camp at dusk, with Jack curled up on the saddle in front of Hiccup, Hiccup began to ponder what it would be like to be able to speak to dragons. Toothless had seemed to be fascinated by the speaking elder, and Hiccup wanted to know the stories he was telling. He sighed, knowing that it would likely never happen.

* * *

><p>Two weeks of learning, two weeks of meeting new dragons, and two weeks of making notes. Two weeks, and Hiccup was satisfied with the amount of information he had gathered. Surprised was actually more like it. He'd discovered things about the Timberjack's colorings, their habits, their lifestyles, mating rituals, territorial aspects…he'd learned a lot in such a short time. He also had added new member to his…well, he didn't have a word for it yet. His…gathering…maybe…family?<p>

The very last day, the group journeyed to every one of the 'territories' they had visited to give their goodbyes and thanks. Then, after everything had been packed, before they left, Hiccup and Toothless went out to give their individual goodbye. This consisted of the duo climbing as high as they could into the air and diving straight down, pulling up right before the trees as they screamed over the territories, the legendary Night Fury screech echoing behind them.

As they returned to the campsite, they heard the roars of several of the resident Timberjacks.

"Showoff." Astrid had called him when they landed.

* * *

><p>When the last vestiges of the sun faded from the air, they landed along the coastline they had been following. They were going to turn inland tomorrow, following a river back to it's source in the mountains. There, they hopped to meet some of the Skrill. By the fire they had set up for the evening, Hiccup read the KOS Dragon Manual's entry on the Skrill aloud.<p>

"The Skrill. Size: Medium. Firepower: Medium. Temper: Horrible. Medium sized dragon known for it's continuous stream of fire. These dragons can also be very vengeful. Beware if you anger one and don't kill it. Extremely dangerous…blah blah. So it's a dragon with bad breath and a bad temper. Reminds me of the twins."

"They have been know for their tempers, huh." Astrid said, sleepily.

"Yep." Hiccup said. "Lets hit the hay. We've got a long journey tomorrow."

Jack followed Astrid into her tent as Hiccup tied the flaps together on his. Despite his best efforts, he couldn't help but think while everything was going according to plan, not all things were right. Especially with his Viking-ess. He'd have to talk to her tomorrow.

* * *

><p>AUTHOR'S NOTES:<p>

Okay so, I know Chapter 3 and 4 have both been relatively short chapters, but once we get past this point, stuff starts getting a little bit longer and better, and the plot thickens...since it wasn't thick enough already.

Anyways, as always, hope you enjoyed the read, and let me know what you think!

All uses of the name Bluebell are credit to: Vrenna Vrien or Enchantable on .


	5. Chapter 5

Hiccup had nightmares before, especially for the first few months after his battle with The Death. But the one he had that night was especially vivid and especially horrifying. He had been lying on a bed, chains on his legs and arms. Then, Ruffnut and Tuffnut had walked into view and...he shuddered. It was disgusting...and...wrong on so many heard the birds chirping outside as he lay on his bedding, his nightmare still burning in his mind. Slowly, he rolled onto his side and sat up, beginning to untie his tent flaps. The day was still early, the misty atmosphere indicating that it was right after daybreak. He was attempting to rekindle the embers from last night's fire when he heard Astrid's tent flaps open, a quiet sound in the early he showed no reaction when she opened the flaps, he couldn't help but blink in surprise when she slowly walked up behind him and placed her arms around his neck. He leaned his head onto her forearm, continuing to poke the embers with a stick.

"Morning." Hiccup greeted her stiffly. "Pain in your leg or nightmares?" she asked, a small hint of concern in her voice. "A very, very disturbing nightmare." Hiccup answered, turning into her embrace. She lived not far from Gobber's forge, and often in the early mornings right after his battle with the Death. when she got up to train, she'd seen him hard at work in the forge, trying to get the nightmares off his mind, or massaging the stump of his leg. All of those mornings she'd come to him, and they would talk while Hiccup worked, most times until Gobber came in a few hours before lunch.

Hiccup turned back to the embers and tossed a few sticks onto the glowing coals before sitting down on the sturdy old log they'd drug up beside the fire.

"Want to talk about it?" she asked, sitting down beside him on the old log. "Not really. It was just...blurgh." Hiccup gagged slightly and stuck out his tongue. She smiled at his expression. He turned back to the now crackling sticks. "But Astrid, what's wrong with you?" She tensed behind him. Of course she couldn't hide it from Hiccup. It would be like trying to hide a whale behind a tree, trying to hide something from someone so perceptive when you were traveling together with only each other for human company. "It's nothing." Astrid answered. "You're a bad liar." Hiccup replied. She leaned against him, causing a flush to go across his cheeks. Where no one could see them, she was affectionate...to a degree, he thought as he felt her punch him on his right leg. "Well...it's just that...I guess I miss home." she said with a sigh. She didn't want to miss it, in fact, she hated the fact that she did. "That's it? I miss Berk too, but this is the adventure of a lifetime! We're going to meet dragon species that have never been met as friends before, and learn about them! We're like...human representatives!" "Calm down Hiccup, or you'll wake up Jack." He hadn't realized it, but as he was talking he was gradually growing louder and gesturing with his hands. He chuckled, scratching the back of his head. "And I know all that. But the thing is...I just miss home and all the familiar faces, and people." "You've got one right here." Hiccup said leaning over to her. She smiled as she kissed him. Somewhere in her heart, Astrid felt much better knowing that Hiccup was here with her. Sure, he wasn't the strongest or the fastest, but he was hers. He'd probably jump off a cliff if she asked. 'Of course, Toothless would be there to catch him.' she thought, the wing beats of their returning dragons growing louder. She heard Toothless roar, and felt Hiccup tense. He pushed her slightly, standing up when she was no longer leaning on him. "Hiccup, what's wrong?" she asked, then, Toothless landed in the clearing, alone, pulling on the ropes Hiccup had set up to let him fly by himself. It was one of his proudest achievements, giving back the independent flight to the dragon. "Toothless, where's Bluebell?" Hiccup asked, concerned by the distress on the dragon's features. "GROOAR!" Toothless roared, flicking his head towards his back. "C'mon Astrid." Hiccup said, turning back to where she had been. The girl was just emerging from her tent, the small amount of armor she had brought already strapped on, axe swung over her shoulder. Hiccup reached down and found his own waist bare. He rushed to his tent, grabbed his weapons belt and strapped it on. Astrid was waiting beside Toothless, her face worried.

* * *

><p>They flew fast, as fast as Toothless could go with two passengers. They reached the mountains and Toothless turned North, flying over at least seven mountains before turning East and flying down the mountain. The journey took them the better part of an hour.<p>

When Toothless began pulling in his wings to go lower, Hiccup switched the tail fin with a quick move of his prosthetic leg, and Toothless glided down towards the mountainside. Where they landed, there were signs of a struggle, along with tail spikes embedded in the rocks around them. "Whoa...what happened?" Hiccup asked. He looked at the ground. There were burn marks and blast sights everywhere. Astrid was kneeling on the ground, examining prints. There were four clawed sets, three clawed, and five clawed. She looked at Toothless. He had four. She knew that Bluebell had three on each foot, so the five clawed set had to belong to other dragons. "Hiccup," she called. "how many toes do the Skrill have?" "Uh..." he began, thinking. She sighed, turning to Toothless. "Toothless, were the dragons Skrill?" "Gralll." the dragon rumbled to her. She was about to turn and look at Hiccup, but he answered before she could. "That means yes." "So...then what happened to Bluebell?" Astrid asked. Toothless growled, jumping into the air and landing by a boulder. He the walked over to a rock and grabbed a bit of fresh hide. He shook it, throwing it down. He then looked up, and began to growl. "What is he-" Astrid began. "Watch." Hiccup answered her, watching Toothless. The dragon stomped scaled hide with one foot, then blasted it with fire. "The Skrill must have taken her."

"Why?" Astrid asked. Hiccup shrugged, turning back to his Night Fury. "So...you flew here...to eat?" Hiccup looked at Toothless. He rumbled his approval. "And while you were eating, you got attacked." Astrid stated. Toothless blinked. "You got free and Bluebell didn't." Hiccup finished. Toothless grumbled and motioned his head in a 'come here' motion. He then bent low so they could get on easier on the rocky terrain. Hiccup took his place in the front of the saddle, and Astrid climbed on behind him and gripped tight.

"C'mon Toothless, lets find the Skrill." Astrid said, worry in her voice.

* * *

><p>They flew fast and low over the mountains, Toothless pulling his head every so often indicating a slight change in direction. It took them twenty minutes of flying South before a sharp, harsh screech broke the relative quiet of Toothless's flapping wings and their individual thoughts. A dark gray dragon was suddenly flying at them. Hiccup didn't have much time to react as the dragon shot a burst of fire at them, and he yanked Toothless's pedal up, opening it fully, and they rapidly gained altitude. Hiccup felt Astrid wrap herself around him, holding tight. The fire blast missed, sailing by as Toothless hit the offending dragon with a blue blast, right in the chest. The dragon spun out of control, plummeting to the ground in a hurry. He opened his wings moments before he crashed, slowing himself to touch down gently, then returning to the air. The gray dragon began to rapidly climb back up to their level, letting out another harsh cry. Toothless groaned in exasperation, as Hiccup switched them into to dive, catching the gray dragon with another fireball to the face as they shot by. This caused the dragon to lose consciousness and slam into the ground hard. Toothless landed beside him, growling. The dragon cracked his eyes open, pain clearly gracing his features. Hiccup took the opportunity to study the dragon. He was about the size of a Deadly Nadder, with spikes running all the way down his back, and extensions coming from the bony supports in his wings. His neck and head were shaped similar to Toothless's, but his spikes stopped just above where his eyebrows would be. His most startling feature was his eyes. They were a piercing red color, that seemed to glow, even in the bright sunlight around them. The dragon screeched again, barely louder than a mumble.<p>

"We don't mean you any harm, as long as you don't." Hiccup spoke to the dragon, not sure if he'd understand. The dragon growled, a low, deep sound, and rolled over onto his feet. He shrugged through his body, rolling his legs and wings. The gray dragon then began to flap his wings and took to the air, slowly gaining height. Toothless pulled at his reigns, clearly intending to follow the dragon. Hiccup exchanged a quick glance with Astrid, and switched the fin into the 'rise' position.

They followed the dragon a little farther south, before it dove into a craggy valley that they easily could have flown past. Toothless followed, his riders wary of the unknown valley.

"Groaar!" Toothless roared out as they landed. There was a crack in the rock, wide enough for the dragon they had seen earlier to squeeze into with little room to spare. The gray dragon appeared again out of the looming darkness of the crag. He entered the small valley and moved aside from the entrance. A dark gray dragon exited next, the color of charcoal dust, followed by several other dragons in various shades of gray. In total, nine dragons, all similar to the one that Toothless had fought stood there. Some were smaller, but the one uniting trait of the dragons was the red eyes. They all had piercing red eyes.

There was a tense moment when none of the beings in the craggy valley moved, until Hiccup slowly unhooked his foot from Toothless's pedal, and adjusted himself so he was sitting on one side of the Night Fury. The dragons on the other side stirred, some tensing, others flinching back.

"Hiccup!" Astrid hissed, not comfortable with the fact that the dragons across from them were all staring, waiting, and watching with unknown intentions.

"Relax. They would have attacked already if they intended too." Hiccup whispered to her before slowly sliding to the ground, using Toothless to gain his footing again. Astrid sighed, and Hiccup knew, gritted her teeth, before sliding off the saddle next to him. He felt her hand on his shoulder. He turned and looked at her. She had determination in her eyes, and concern, and…fear. He smiled, trying to look confident.

"It'll be fine. C'mon Toothless." Hiccup said. He placed one arm around her shoulders and one hand on Toothless's neck. They slowly advanced towards the opposite side. Several of the dragons shrank back. When they were only about three feet away, all but two had shrunk back from them. Hiccup recognized the one from earlier on their right, but a larger, seemingly older dragon stood directly in front. He was the charcoal dust colored one that had exited the cave second.

Hiccup slowly reached his hand out, pausing about halfway between their positions. Toothless gurgled next to Hiccup, and Astrid tightened her grip around his waist. The dragon across from him didn't even flinch. He slowly reached his nose towards Hiccup and sniffed. His nose twitched, then he pulled back, turning his head back to the others. He gave a growling order and they all advanced forward, slowly. The charcoal-dust dragon stepped back. One by one, the other seven dragons advanced and sniffed an amazed Hiccup's hand, retreating afterwards.

"Astrid, your hurting my ribs." Hiccup said. He saw a faint trace of a smile on her face before she relaxed her grip, slightly.

Finally, the charcoal-dust dragon rumbled something, turning his face to Astrid. He sniffed her, darting back. He looked at Toothless and growled out something in his screechy voice. Hiccup was beginning to realize where 'Skrill' came from. These dragons 'voices' were definitely harsh and shrill.

Toothless half growled, sitting down on his haunches and staring at the other dragon that had remained upfront, the one he had shot out of the air. The charcoal-dust dragon, who was apparently leader of the bunch, looked at the other Skrill, who simply scratched a claw in the dirt, more interested in that than the…

'Is this a discussion?' Hiccup wondered.

The leader of the Skrill looked back down at Hiccup, then at Toothless before walking towards the crag the dragons had come from. Toothless stood and nosed Hiccup in the back, in the direction of the dragon.

The crag wasn't tight for the two humans or Toothless, but the leader Skrill had to duck slightly to move through. Inside, there was a large dome with a hole in the ceiling. It was craggy and had stalagmites hanging everywhere. The rock inside was various shades, ranging from brown to a yellow tint. Then he heard Astrid gasp. He looked at her and followed her eyes. Bluebell was curled up on a slight raise of the rock, like a dais. The Nadder's scales flashed weird reflections on the ceiling. Behind her, a small pool of water was being filled by a waterfall that was just as fast draining it somewhere else.

Hiccup whistled. The cave was truly a wonderful sight. He would love to have a place like this to escape to back on Berk. He'd make a few changes, of course.

As they approached Bluebell, Hiccup could make out shiny rocks, gold pieces, and what looked like an entire treasure trove of shiny things. Suddenly something clicked in his brain. Bluebell had been taken by the dragons because of her beauty. Slain Nadder's scales had often been use in jewelry back in Berk. Of course, nowadays they came from naturally shed scales.

Bluebell chirped in happiness when she saw Astrid. The dragon rose as Astrid let go of Hiccup and rushed past the Skrill to hug her dragon.

"Oh Bluebell, I was so worried about you when I thought you had been kidnapped and…oh I'm so glad you're okay!" Astrid exclaimed, before she straightened up and dusted herself off, trying to act nonchalant. "Of course, I would have had to break some heads if you hadn't been."

Toothless made a warbling sound in his throat Hiccup recognized as laughter. He himself couldn't stop from silently chuckling at her outpouring of emotion, then rapid return to…Astrid-ness.

"They just took her for her shiny scales." Hiccup said, stepping forward onto the raised rock. His metal foot clanged against a helmet, one in a style he had never seen before. It was polished steel, with a nose guard down the front, and covered the rest of the head. "They like shiny things, apparently."

In the Skrill's treasure trove, there were gold candelabras, silver serving trays, gem studded rings, a bottle, a pot, rocks with shiny mineral deposits, and all sorts of other reflective and colorful surfaces. There was a growl from behind Hiccup, a harsh yowling sound, which was silenced by a deep screech. When he turned, Hiccup saw the leader dragon looking at a smaller pale gray colored dragon. He hadn't seen that one outside. It looked to be younger than the others, only about half their size.

Hiccup was suddenly struck by an uh-oh thought.

"Astrid…we left Jack back at the camp." Hiccup said, his face going into despair mode.

"Oh crap." Astrid stated.

* * *

><p>They had left the dragon's lair without much problem. When Astrid had mounted Bluebell the dark gray dragon, which Hiccup had named Stormcloud because of his color, and because he needed a way to point out which gray dragon he was talking about, had growled when he realized they were leaving, but after Hiccup told Toothless to tell them that they would be back, he had settled down, begrudgingly. Charcoal, the leader, smacked Stormcloud lightly with his long tail before they'd left. Not long after, the Viking's campsite came into view. A small trail of smoke was drifting up, and Hiccup knew that he hadn't successfully rekindled the fire earlier.<p>

"My tent…" Hiccup moaned when they landed. The tent was in shreds, with a few of the larger pieces smoldering. All of his things were intact, despite being scattered about. He felt something rub against his right left, and saw Jack look up at him, a happy look on his scaly face.

'Why me…?'

* * *

><p>Hiccup decided he would sleep under Toothless's wing. He was going to try at least. Astrid seemed rather off-put by his plan, as if she hadn't expected anything at all like it. Of course, a storm brewed up that night as they sat by the fire. As the large, freezing rain drops began to fall, Hiccup sat propped against the dragon's side, his wing extended out, doing a poor job of blocking the rain as it blew in at a slight angle, soaking an already miserable Hiccup. He was going to have to do something about this if he was going to be sleeping here.<p>

"The Gods hate me..." Hiccup mumbled.

"Hiccup?" Astrid called.

"Yeah?" He answered, sounding rather miserable and angry. Toothless retracted his wing, dumping the small amount of rain he had been blocking onto Hiccup. Astrid stood over him, offering a hand. He took it and stood up. She smiled at his bedraggled-ness.

"Come on, get out of the rain before you get sick." she said, pulling him towards her tent.

"Buh-uh-Astrid-um." Hiccup stuttered, unsure of an argument to make, if indeed he should make one. He really wanted to be in the tent, warm, dry, and close to her. But…

"C'mon Hiccup. You're sleeping with me until you get another tent." she said, ducking inside. Hiccup followed, still unable to muster an argument.

He stripped off his rather soaked over layers, placing them at the foot of the bedding. Astrid was sitting at the back of the tent, watching him. He blushed, even though he was still wearing an undershirt and long johns, aware of just how scrawny he was. She laughed at his flustering, stroking Jack who was curled up beside her, asleep. He sat down across from her, ducking his head slightly at the angle.

"You're embarrassed." she said.

"Who me? Nooo! Of course not. I'm just the worst Viking in Berk history, sharing a tent with one of the best, most attractive Vikings in history. Ah who am I kidding, you're a Goddess."

"You do a good job of summing things up." Astrid said, leaning forward.

"Why thank you. It comes from years of practice and of- mph! Mm…" Hiccup was forced to stop talking as Astrid kissed him. A dreamy, peaceful look came over his face.

"But you don't give yourself enough credit." Astrid said as she broke away from him. He smiled, propping up on his side, watching her as she began to polish her axe. She looked up at him. "What?"

"Sometimes I think Toothless really did kill me and I'm in some unknown plane of miracles in the afterlife."

Astrid smiled, setting her axe to the side, punching him in the shoulder, hard enough he rolled into the side of the tent, sliding down onto the blanketed padding.

"Ow! Reason?" Hiccup moaned, rubbing his sore shoulder as he lay there.

"If you were dead, would your shoulder hurt that much?" Astrid asked, turning her attention back polishing her axe. Hiccup groaned. He heard a thunk as she set her Axe aside. "We'd better get some sleep if we're going to go back early in the morning."

"Yeah." Hiccup adjusted himself so that he was comfortable and not taking up half the tent. Astrid blew out the lantern in the corner, engulfing them in darkness. The rain pattered against the guard on the tent as Hiccup closed his eyes. He felt Astrid crawl up next to him and put her head on the rolled blanket he was using as a pillow.

"Goodnight." she murmured. Hiccup felt her snuggle against him, and was sure his own cheeks were red enough to glow.

'Why…of all people…did she choose me?' Hiccup wondered as he fell asleep. 'Maybe the Gods don't hate me…'

* * *

><p>AUTHOR'S NOTES:<p>

Sorry it's taking so long to get the chapters put up here, like I said, I'm polishing them all up before posting them here. Anyways, hope you enjoy this chapter! Review if you want, fav if you dare!


	6. Chapter 6

Dawn brings a lot of things in Berk. Sometimes it brings new fallen snow, other times it brings hail damage to light, and still others it brings dew and rain-refreshed plants. This particular morning, a few hundred miles south of the Isle of Berk, morning brought dragons.

"Oww! OWW! Jack stop!" Hiccup roared. The little dragon was playing tug of war with his scalp for a lock of his hair. He heard Astrid laughing as she watched the dragon tug with his entire body, trying to rip out the lock of hair he was fighting for. "Aagh!"

The dragon released his grip on Hiccup's hair and pranced over to Astrid was sitting up beside Hiccup. The Viking gently rubbed the top of his head, giving the dragon his best angry face. As the Timberjack in question rubbed against Astrid's hand, he stared back at Hiccup, a smug look on his features.

Hiccup stumbled outside to start a new fire, as the old one had been extinguished by the rain last night. Toothless quietly rumbled out a greeting, walking over to his rider and sniffing his head before laughing is his weird draconic laugh.

"Gee, thanks you useless reptile." Hiccup said with his dry sarcasm, removing a larger scrap of his tent from the top of the small woodpile. He selected the driest pieces and piled them on top of the blackened and soggy remains of last night's fire. "Toothless."

A small blue ball of flame flew in over his head, hitting the wood and lighting it. The wood began to crackle as the flames caught. Bluebell roused herself behind the dup, shaking herself off. There was a shrill, piercing roar that Hiccup immediately recognized. He looked up and saw Stormcloud, the dark grey Skrill that Toothless had fought the day before, flying in overhead.

"Hmm… He really likes Bluebell." Hiccup observed to himself.

The dragon landed near the Nadder, extending one foot and bowing low to her. Hiccup recognized the gesture as something dragons did when trying to impress one another. Some dragons had even occasionally bowed to Toothless and him. Hiccup grinned, amused by the Skrill's dismay when Bluebell simply ignored him and walked away.

"What's all the- Oh." Astrid spoke, exiting the tent with Jack right behind her. The Timberjack gurgled when he saw the other dragon, rushing up to him. Stormcloud looked down in annoyance at the baby dragon who was now admiring him with wide eyes.

"Stormcloud showed up and bowed to Bluebell, but she ignored him." Hiccup said, trying not to laugh very loudly as the Skrill followed after Bluebell. "Looks like he likes her."

Toothless huffed, blowing a warm blast of air into Hiccup's hair and tousling it.

"Reminds me of Snotlout." Astrid observed, watching the dragons. Hiccup couldn't suppress his laughter any longer as he remembered just the incidents in dragon training when Astrid had been followed by Snotlout everywhere she went, the lout flirting with her all the while.

Jack wandered back over to them, off put by being ignored. Toothless nudged Hiccup.

"What is it bud?" Hiccup asked. Toothless flipped his tail forward, the red fin flopping slightly. "Oh, right."

Hiccup walked over to Toothless's side. The rope pulley system for his fin was set up so that it could be changed from peddle to manual in just a couple of minutes. It was a challenge Hiccup had dedicated himself too. He knew he couldn't always fly with Toothless, so he had sat down and thought. And thought. And thought. After a month he had come up with a modified system of rope that could be unhooked from the bottom of his pedal and moved to his wing. That system had failed. It had required unusual wing movements every so often, and Toothless had trouble landing.

After that, Hiccup had moved on to another ingenious idea. He rigged some ropes in between the two fins so that the artificial one would move in unison with its real counterpart. It had worked until Toothless had tried more complex maneuvers, such as flattening one side of his wings for a steep dive. Luckily the Night Fury had crashed into the ocean. So it had been back to the drawing board. He'd stayed up until daybreak several days working on new systems, finding flaws, and scrapping them. Finally an idea struck him as foolproof. Instead of shortening the rope, make it longer, so Toothless could control it with his leg. Based on the angles of his legs in flight, he could maneuver the fin with precision. It had taken some getting used to, but finally, Toothless was able to fly on his own again. All it took was a few metal pins and a slip knot for the Dragon's leg.

"There you go, all done." Hiccup said, slipping the rope over the Night Fury's leg. Toothless smiled in appreciation, tugging slightly on the rope. Then he looked down at Jack, rumbling something to him. The little dragon's eyes lit up and he hopped up excitedly. Toothless opened his wings, Slowly alighting into the air. The Timberjack followed after him, roaring as loud as he could. "What do you suppose they're up to?"

"I assume he's taking him hunting, or fishing or something." Astrid said, placing some raw meat into the pan that was sitting on a flat rock over the fire. Hiccup nodded, picking up the water skins and tromping off to the nearby creek, his metal leg squeaking slightly. He was going to have to clean it soon, or else it might rust from the rain it had been exposed to.

* * *

><p>After everyone had eaten and returned back to the camp, Jack still bouncing around, they took to the skies, flying after Stormcloud who was looping through the air in front of Bluebell. The Nadder was ignoring the showoff dragon with a cold indifference.<p>

The group landed in the crag, and Charcoal, lead dragon of the Skrill was there waiting for them. He eyed Stormcloud, who simply looked elsewhere. Jack landed excitedly in front of the large dragon, making all sorts of noises as he surveyed the Skrill in front of him. Charcoal leaned down and sniffed the baby dragon, a quiet rumbling coming from his throat. Jack continued making noises, unabashed, as Charcoal made a grating sound like metal scraping against more metal. Hiccup realized he was laughing at the Timberjack's chattering.

Once more the Viking felt a pang of sadness, wishing he could speak to dragons. He wanted to know what Jack was saying. Then again, he was probably telling a story about how he burned down Hiccup's tent and tried to eat his toe and played tug of war with his scalp.

Hiccup shook his head and dismounted, slowly walking up to Charcoal. The dragon saw him, and moved his tail to push Hiccup lightly towards the entrance to their cave. Hiccup opened his notebook to where he had prepared a page with all sorts of questions he wanted answered about the Skrill. Inside the cave, the Viking found a few of the larger dragons already stirring about. He sat down on flat rock and began sketching an anatomical drawing of the gray dragons. And so began Hiccup's study of the Skrill.

* * *

><p>Hiccup learned quite a lot about the dragons in the two weeks following their first meeting. After he had completed his drawing he began to follow the dragons around. Hiccup soon discovered the key between telling the males and females apart.<p>

The male dragons had longer tails and spikes that stopped just before their eyebrow-ridges. The female's spikes stopped about two inches away from their ridges. The males also tended to be a darker color, but that didn't always hold true. The pale-gray baby dragon Hiccup had seen the first day was male. Hiccup named that particular Skrill Smoky.

The more dragons Hiccup saw, the more he realized that typically, the larger the dragons, the older they were. Hiccup soon discovered that based on this fact, the largest female in the group of Skrill was Charcoal's mate. And based on the way she treated Stormcloud, he was her son.

Stormcloud seemed to be young compared to most of the other dragons, though two of the others seemed to be about his same age, being about the same size. Hiccup followed the dragons once or twice on Toothless and watched how they hunted. The larger dragons swooped in and grabbed the prey, while the younger ones surrounded them and slowly closed in, eventually taking down whatever they were after, which normally was a deer.

Once, during the first week Hiccup was there, they caught a wild boar, and all the dragons shared in the kill, not just the ones that caught it. It wasn't surprising, as the boars were rare. Sometimes when the Viking men of Berk came back from raids with a boar, it was used as the centerpiece for a feast.

Hiccup also learned about the dragon's habits. There were two pairs of mates in the Skrill's group, and one lone older female. Each of these pairs, and the female had a youngling that was Stormcloud's age. The older lone female was also the mother to the young dragon, Smoky. Hiccup began to realize that the Skrill were a lot like his own village. He pointed it out to Astrid once while they were sitting by the fire one night.

"It's like one big gathering of dragons…like Berk is for humans. But when you look closer, you start to notice the inner workings of their system. The individual families, and the jobs that each one of the dragons does."

"Hiccup, I'm sure it's amazing and all, but it shouldn't be all that surprising to you. You're the first person to figure out that dragons were sentient beings and not evil, just forced to be. It was one of the most amazing things anyone has done."

That compliment took Hiccup by surprise. When he'd looked at Astrid, she seemed focused on staring at the fire, a slight redness creeping across her face. He couldn't help but smile. She was so…complex. He might be able to figure out the inner workings of dragon's society, but he doubted he'd ever fully understand her.

* * *

><p>The 10th day, Hiccup was watching the younger dragons go about hunting while he roasted a rabbit he'd snared. Astrid was out trying to find her own, to 'show her independence'. Privately, Hiccup thought the idea ridiculous, but would never tell Astrid that, not while he was still sane and wanted to keep his other limbs intact.<p>

After he had eaten, Hiccup lazed about, using Toothless as a backrest. The duo watched the younger Skrill fly about, trying to catch something in the open field in front of them. Jack was a few feet away, running at some saplings and trying to cut them down using his wings. But for all his efforts, he was barely nicking them. Bluebell watched over him from a short distance, rumbling encouragements every now and then.

Stormcloud circled overhead the group of dragons, suddenly diving down and landing hard. He picked something up in his jaws, then flew towards where Bluebell and the others were. As per his usual ritual, Stormcloud ignored everyone but Bluebell, dropping a red, shiny, quartz rock at her feet. He then sat on his haunches, staring at her as if expecting something. Jack hopped over and starting babbling to Bluebell, much to Stormcloud's annoyance. He swiped the baby dragon away with his tail, and the young dragon let out a small squeal. That was when all Hel broke loose.

Hiccup wouldn't have believed his eyes if his ears hadn't been ringing to back them up. In less than the blink of an eye, Bluebell roared, a cross between a bird and the Green Death, tackled Stormcloud, knocked him onto his back, and gripped down on his throat. The Skrill's eyes bulged out of his head, unable to make a sound. Hiccup chanced a glance at Toothless, who was just as wide eyed as he probably was.

Bluebell slowly released her grip on Stormcloud's throat, growling at him as she backed off. The Skrill rolled to his feet and flew away as fast as he could, just as Astrid cam crashing through the underbrush.

"What…the heck…happened?" She asked, panting and leaning over on her knees. Hiccup pointed to Bluebell, still unable to form words. "Speak!"

"Bluebell…she pounced on Stormcloud! Because he knocked Jack aside with his tail." Hiccup formed words. Then he heard shrill, metal scraping metal sounds from the large field where the Skrill were. Stormcloud was slinking away as the other dragons laughed at him.

* * *

><p>The day after Bluebell pounced on Stormcloud, the rather thick headed Skrill wouldn't come anywhere near her, or Jack. The baby dragon was fine, and had even growled and jumped around a sapling he had broken when he was flicked aside, proclaiming his victory.<p>

Six days after Bluebell's outburst, Hiccup decided it was time to move on. They had been there for two and a half weeks, seventeen days. The night of the seventeenth day, Hiccup suggested it to Astrid.

"Sounds good to me. Where are we headed next?" She asked as they lay together in the tent. Hiccup fumbled around before finding the map.

"I was thinking about trying to find the Whispering Death. The only problem is, they're nomads. They don't normally stay in one place for longer than a season. There's a spot that's known to be popular with them in the spring, according to some old writings I found, but they don't always show. And the spot is a about a hundred miles inland." Hiccup said. The proposal was serious. Living on Berk, you get used to the sights and sounds of the ocean, and having it nearby. Inland raiders had often talked about missing the sea during their raids, which sometimes lasted up to a month.

"A hundred miles inland…" Astrid repeated quietly. "Well, we could always try searching around there, and if we don't find them in a couple of weeks, then we could leave and come back later."

"So…that's a yes?"

"You're leading this trip. I'm just along for the sights."

"Like what?"

Astrid smiled and kissed him.

"You're face after I do that." she answered. She always managed to put him into a state of stupor when she kissed him. Hiccup mumbled something unintelligible, and the Vikingess smiled, placing her head on his chest. She felt Jack crawl in between them slightly and curl up. She laughed when she heard Hiccup grumble something as he placed his arm around her shoulders. And so, the trio slept, resting up for tomorrow and the journey ahead.

* * *

><p>AUTHOR'S NOTES:<p>

And Here's Chapter 7, Chock Full of Skrill-y Goodness and Dragon Romance. Remember, please review. It really does help me A LOT to know what people think of the chapters.


	7. Chapter 7

Journey of a Thousand Miles: Chapter 7

Hiccup had hunted trolls before, several times. He'd also hunted for other mythical creatures. However, he was beginning to suspect that the Whispering Death was a myth. He'd seen more signs of trolls than he had of this dragon.

"Two weeks…that's how long it's been, all without a sign…" Hiccup muttered as he pressed himself against Toothless. It was cool, and rather chilly. The sun hadn't fully warmed the Earth yet, and the misty morning air was rather cool when flying on a dragon. Toothless didn't seem to mind, in fact, he reveled in it. Cool air was Toothless's second element. It likely had something to do with the fact that his insides could produce fire hot enough to melt stone.

They had left the Skrill without much of a fuss, likely because Astrid had left a few scales that Bluebell had shed. Jack had grown rather attached to Charcoal, the leader of the band of Skrill they had met. The little Timberjack had grumbled for a few days after they left, being rather moody towards Astrid, and completely ignoring Hiccup, not that him ignoring the Viking was unusual. Jack didn't like sharing Astrid's attention.

The day they left, they flew until they reached a river that was about a thousand feet across, and several feet deep. The river emptied out into the ocean, created a brackish fjord at its mouth. They'd camped there for the night, turning inward and following the river until it turned south.

They'd left the mountains behind while traveling along the river. While they'd sat around the fire the first night after turning inward, Hiccup had produced several charts of the stars and the map, trying to find their position.

The mountains depicted on the map formed a U shape, beginning near the mouth of the large river, and headed north, where they eventually traveled back down towards the river, in a near straight line until a small valley formed a dimple. After the valley, the mountains turned and headed west until they ran off the map. The small dimple of a valley was where they were headed. The valley was popular with the Whispering Deaths in the spring, according to some old explorer's logs Hiccup had read.

After extensively studying the map and charts, Hiccup had declared that they would reach the small creek that ran into the river by noon the next day. They would follow the creek back north until they reached a small lake that it ran through, and then head Northwest until they reached the small valley.

It took them about two and a half days of travel to reach the small lake depicted on the map, where they camped for the night. From there they turned Northwest just like Hiccup had planned. The group had reached the Entrance to the valley about a half day after leaving their camp, and began to set up a new one at the mouth of the valley.

After lunch that day, Hiccup and Toothless took their first flight over the valley. They'd flown multiple times over the last week and a half, and Astrid had conducted foot searches. They had found no signs of the Whispering Deaths.

Their latest flight was to search the last and farthest west part of the valley. Hiccup was tired from waking so early, and rather irritated at the wasted time they'd spent. He resolved that if they didn't find a sign today, they were leaving.

"What's that?" Hiccup called to Toothless, pointing towards a dark smoke cloud hanging just above the forest. The dragon glanced back at Hiccup, following his gesture. Toothless spotted the cloud, and angled himself towards it as Hiccup switched the tailfin. They dove towards the treetops, skimming just over the smoke, where Hiccup saw a small cabin.

"Take us down Toothless." Hiccup said, wondering who could be living here, in the middle of nowhere. The nearest town marked on the map was south, about a hundred miles away. Toothless banked in the air, Hiccup adjusting as needed, slowing them sufficiently to land by the cabin.

Hiccup eased off the side of the dragon, checking to make sure he had his daggers on his waist before moving towards the door. There were no windows in the cabin, and the bark was still on the logs it was composed of. Hiccup reached towards the door, unsure of whether to knock or not. The Viking decided it would be a good idea, and extended his hand, rapping loudly on the thick door before stepping back a few paces, unsure of what to expect. The door opened, and a puzzled looking old man stood there, holding a walking staff in his hand. He blinked when he saw Hiccup standing there.

"Uh…Hi." Hiccup spoke, nervously waving his hand.

* * *

><p>Astrid was walking along something that looked like a path. She'd stumbled across it while combing through the underbrush. Bluebell and Jack were off somewhere, Bluebell probably watching him play. She'd followed the path towards the mountains.<p>

It was slim and not well worn, but it was cleared and not overgrown with sticks and such, like a game trail. She stopped, looking at a depression in the mud. She kneeled down beside it, examining it closer. It looked similar to one of Bluebell's prints. It had three claws, but these were thinner and long, and there was a fourth, smaller than the others behind the main body of the print.

"This must be the dragon…" Astrid said, rising from her kneeling position. She felt a sudden pressure in her head, and a piercing pain split her mind. She wasn't sure what was happening, but she thought she screamed in pain…

* * *

><p>Hiccup sat across from the strange man, sipping on a strange brew he had made. It tasted unusual, like a cross between slightly sour grapes and raspberries.<p>

'Probably an acquired taste.' Hiccup thought. It wasn't a bitter brew, but it was something he'd have to get used to before he could enjoy it.

"Hmhm…you seem unsure about the herbal root tea." Balder chuckled at Hiccup's expression.

"Yeah…it's a little…odd." Hiccup said, setting his cup on the table between them. The cabin was small, containing a bed in one corner, with a small chest at its foot, a table in the middle with a few cabinets above it, and a fireplace right next to it.

"So, young Hiccup, rider of the legendary Night Fury, Toothless, may I ask what are you doing in this humble valley?" Balder asked, still smiling.

"Well…you see, I'm from Berk, and last year we made peace with the dragons that live there, thanks to Toothless." Hiccup began. "We destroyed the dragon that was making them steal food. That's where I lost my leg. Recently, I've been rewriting the dragon manual that details the dragons that we know about. So Toothless and I, along with Astrid and Bluebell and Jack, our friends, we've been flying around trying to find the dragons so I can learn more about them."

"That seems to be quite the undertaking." Balder said, scratching his chin. "I suppose you've come here to meet the Whispering Death species?"

"Yes, sir. Astrid is probably still searching for a sign of them." Hiccup answered, suddenly feeling a small pang of guilt that he'd forgotten about her searching.

"What all do you know about them?" Balder asked, gazing at Hiccup with curiosity.

"Well, the KOS Manual, Kill On Sight, says that they are medium sized dragons with six sets of teeth, but that's not what makes them deadly, it's the fact that they can paralyze victims with some sort of mental attack." Hiccup said. "Which sounds a little far fetched. I think they may just let out a screech that's too high for human ears to detect that can cause pain by stimulating some part of the ear."

"Your manual isn't too far off actually. The reason they are known as 'Whispering Death' is because they rarely make a sound. They communicate with their minds."

"Whoa."

"Indeed. I can take you and your friends to meet Loki if you want."

Before Hiccup could ask who Loki was, he heard Toothless scratching at the door, whining loudly. He rose to his feet, Balder also rose slowly, and they moved to the door. Toothless whimpered, looking towards a path through the trees.

"Oh my. I believe your friends may have already met Loki." Balder said.

* * *

><p>All Astrid felt was pain. Skull-splitting, mind numbing pain. She was in more pain than she had ever felt. She thought she felt tears running out of her eyes, but she couldn't really think of anything more than escaping the pain, primal terror gripping her. Then the pain lessened for a moment, and she opened her eyes. She saw a blurred shape before her mind shut down, attempting to preserve her sanity.<p>

* * *

><p>Bluebell and Toothless had both heard Astrid's scream, though Bluebell was much closer. She roared and charged in the direction it had come from. Her protective instincts were in overdrive as she arrived onto the small path. She roared again, the strange screech loud in the quiet valley. There was a red dragon standing over her girl, and she struck it with her body as hard as she could. He went flying into the bushes along the path, and a small shape dove onto the dragon from above, latching onto one of its neck spikes. She looked upwards and saw Hiccup and Toothless landing.<p>

Hiccup slid off of Toothless, running over to Astrid, checking on her. Bluebell growled at Jack, telling him to let go of the strange dragon. Bluebell stiffened as she realized there was another human, a stranger, there. She looked over at him as he kneeled next to Hiccup who was examining her girl. Jack detached himself from the strange dragon and flew over to Astrid, nuzzling her cheek slightly.

"She's okay Jack, she just passed out." Hiccup spoke to the little dragon as he held Astrid in his arms.

"This is Jack?" Balder spoke.

"Yeah, he was a baby Timberjack when we found him. And this is Astrid, and Bluebell is the Nadder." Hiccup said, not looking up from his Vikingess.

"And that was Loki." Balder said, pointing to the red dragon that was laying knocked out cold in the underbrush on the side of the trail.

Astrid began to stir, moaning softly. She slowly opened her eyes, focusing in on Hiccup.

"Hiccup- mph!" she was cut off as Hiccup kissed her. She shifted slightly, shutting her eyes before she sat up, breaking the kiss, then punched him on the arm softly. Then she noticed Balder standing nearby and blushed a bright red color, wanting to really hit Hiccup.

"What happened?" Hiccup asked, standing and offering her his hand. She swatted it away before struggling to stand up. Her head was still throbbing, but it was fading fast.

"All I remember is kneeling to check out a footprint and then a splitting pain from my head." Astrid answered.

"That was Loki. He's the Whispering Death dragon you've been searching for." Balder said, looking at Astrid and smiling.

"Astrid, this is Balder. Toothless and I found his cabin when we were flying over earlier." Hiccup said, gesturing to Balder.

"I'm sorry about Loki, but he's not used to strangers. Your axe probably frightened him." Balder said, gesturing to the axe on her back. Bluebell came over to nuzzle her as Jack rubbed against her legs. She slowly rubbed Bluebell's jaw as she watched the man walk over to where the red and yellow dragon was lying in the underbrush. As he approached, the dragon lifted his head before standing.

Hiccup watched as the dragon slowly looked at them and blinked before looking back at Balder.

'Hello.' Hiccup heard the voice in his mind, and judging by Astrid's face, so did she. Hiccup was the first to respond, remembering what Balder had said earlier about the dragons communicating with their mind.

"Hello." He said, forcing his voice to work. He elbowed Astrid who glared at him before returning the greeting.

"Hi." she said.

'Sorry.' the dragon directed his words towards her. It was definitely male, its voice wasn't gruff, but deep and rich.

"As I told you earlier Hiccup, the Whispering Death dragons use their minds to communicate." Balder said, rubbing the top of Loki's head. "It's taken me a while, but I taught Loki to talk, though he prefers communicating with images."

Hiccup's mind began to wonder at all the possibilities of being able to have exact communication with dragons. No longer the in general, pick-up-on-the-clues game that it was now. He could speak to Toothless and the dragon could understand him, but it wasn't always so easy understanding Toothless's replies.

'You are very…sharp minded.' Loki spoke to Hiccup. 'Maybe this is why you learned we aren't bad.'

"Well, it had a lot to do with Toothless not killing me." Hiccup said, scratching the back of his head. He didn't take compliments well. He wasn't used to them. Toothless set his head on Hiccup's shoulder. Hiccup scratched him under his chin and he made the strange purring sound that meant he was enjoying it.

"Well lets not stand around like statues! Come, we'll go back to my cabin and I'll brew up some herbal root tea." Balder said, beginning to walk towards his cabin.

'Oh no…not the rot-root.' Loki said, following after him.

"Rot-root?" Astrid whispered. Hiccup smiled at her, wrapping his arm around her shoulders as the walked.

"You'll see."

* * *

><p>And she did. However, unlike Hiccup, who found it manageable, she couldn't drink it, much to Balder's amusement.<p>

They were sitting outside the cabin on the wooden chairs from the table inside.

"It's funny, when I made the extra chairs, I never expected I'd need them." Balder spoke.

"I imagine it's rather lonely out here all by yourself." Astrid said, watching Jack chase Loki's tail.

"Not really, it was at first, but I have my companions in the Whispering Deaths. Of course, Loki is the only one that stays year round, but I don't have any complaints." Balder answered.

"I've been wondering, why did you name him Loki?" Hiccup asked. He heard the dragon chuckle in his mind as Balder spoke.

"Because I thought the gods were playing a trick on me when I first realized I was communicating with a dragon."

"So when did you first meet?" Astrid asked.

"Oh, it was a long time ago. I was traveling through the mountains when I fell off the path and injured myself. Probably would have bled to death if Loki hadn't found me. He flew down my pack full of supplies to me and brought me fish while I was recovering. After that, we were wary of each other, but not unfriendly. I left, continuing on my journey, but I came back here about a month later. Loki was still here, so I returned the favor of giving him some fish. We gradually got to know each other over several encounters through the years. Eventually, Loki came to stay outside of town where I worked as a blacksmith. I kept him a secret though. Eventually, when I retired, I moved out here and built this little place."

"Wow. You've known each other for so long." Hiccup said, marveling at them. Their bond didn't quite reach as far as his and Toothless's but they were close, and had been for years. It was quite amazing. "If you don't mind me asking though, Loki, you don't quite look that old. At least, not by what I've seen in other dragon species. They typically are larger the older they get, and just…well, they have that general feel of knowledge that comes with age."

'It is hard to predict age on…the looks of we dragons.' Loki said. 'I however am fifty-five years and three seasons old.'

"Yep, Dragons definitely age better than humans." Astrid said. Hiccup chuckled, wondering what she was thinking.

"So, what about you? How did you meet your dragons?" Balder asked. Hiccup began relating the tale about how he was the screw-up then he shot down Toothless, fixed his tail, and was excelling in dragon training because of it, had his flight with Astrid, who took over the story after that, censoring out her pep talk and the kiss she gave him after he got better. Afterwards, they sat in silence until Balder spoke.

"You've been through quite a bit." he said smiling. "But your village…it sounds like a wonderful place now. I would like to go there. Maybe even live there. Then we could be free to pursue what we want, Loki."

"Really? That'd be great!" Hiccup exclaimed.

They talked until the sun grew late in the sky, telling stories and tales. For all three of them, it was nice to be in the company of other humans. For Hiccup, it was one of his greatest dreams come true. Here he was, standing on the threshold of communication with dragons.

When they left that afternoon, Hiccup and Astrid thanked Balder for everything, and flew back to their camp. Once there, they ate a rabbit that Jack and Toothless caught, and climbed into the tent, exhausted.

"Astrid?" Hiccup asked, wondering if she was asleep.

"Yeah Hiccup?" She asked, adjusting herself on his shoulder.

"Are you embarrassed about me?" He asked, not sure what to expect, but wanting an answer.

"No! Hiccup, I'm not embarrassed about you! It's just…well…it's embarrassing to me…you know? I mean…I'm doing a really bad job of explaining this…" she said, sighing.

"Yeah you are." Hiccup agreed. He heard her moving and felt her hear leave his shoulder. Then he felt her hair falling on his face as she came nearer to him, kissing him. Their kiss lasted until she stopped to breathe.

"Hiccup, I love you so much…it's just, I guess I'm embarrassed about other people knowing. But I'm not, and never will be embarrassed of you." she said, then kissed him again before laying back down on his shoulder.

"Hmm…I don't think I'm convinced." Hiccup said. He heard her laugh at him before she gave him one more kiss.

* * *

><p>AUTHOR'S NOTES:<p>

Remember, review! It helps a lot more than you might think.

Anyways, Here's chapter 7. BAM! Talking dragon. Bet you didn't see that coming. And look. Fluff. Nommy nommy nommy fluff.


	8. Chapter 8

Journey of a Thousand Miles: Chapter 8

Some days Hiccup wondered if the Gods hated him. Like the day he had searched for Toothless after shooting him down and had difficulty finding him, or the day that his father had set off for the dragon's nest, doomed to be defeated and worse. This morning felt like another one of those days.

First, he'd been awoken by a Timberjack biting him on his cheek hard enough to draw blood. Then while he was cooking breakfast, a Nadder had sniffed the pepper and nearly impaled him with flying tail spikes. After that, a Night Fury had accidentally knocked him over with his tail while trying to catch fish in a pond Hiccup was washing off in. Hiccup just couldn't wait to see what the Whispering Death had in mind for him.

"Aww, come on Hiccup, cheer up!" Astrid said, prodding him in the ribs and causing him to jump.

"Not helping." Hiccup stated blandly, scowling at her. She scowled back at him, before her face lightened and she step forward and kissed him. His mood instantly lifted. "Okay. Helping a little bit."

Astrid smiled, stepping away from him. "I can't do that too often or you might get used to it."

"Slim chance of that." Hiccup murmured, a dreamy look on his face.

They extinguished the campfire and climbed on their dragons for the flight to Balder's. When they arrived, he was outside waiting on them.

"I hope you brought your notebook with you Hiccup. This will likely be the first time you've ever gleaned so much information from the dragons." Balder said to the male Viking after they'd landed. Once they'd stepped off, he started walking down the winding trail.

"We're walking?" Hiccup asked, surprised.

'Yes. My kin are aware of your coming, but it would be wise not to surprise them by flying in. We don't want more incidents such as…yesterday.' Loki answered, staring at Hiccup. There was a feeling of unease that traveled through their connection that Hiccup sensed had to do with the 'incident'. He turned and followed Balder down the trail.

"That, and I don't want to get too sore before we leave." Balder called back, adding to their conversation. Hiccup shrugged and looked at Astrid. Astrid returned the gesture before following after the Whispering Death with Bluebell. Toothless nosed Hiccup in the back, shoving him forward a bit.

* * *

><p>It took the group about ten minutes to walk across the valley from the small cabin to the opposing mountains. From there, they walked up a steep and rather rocky hillside, Hiccup needing some small assistance from Toothless here and there, and entered a narrow split in the mountains. It was just wide enough for Toothless to spread his wings, and probably for Loki to do the same. He'd yet to actually see the dragon fly.<p>

The walls of the crag were lined wind nooks and hollows and caves, perfect for dragons to hide and nest in. Loki paused in his step and sat down on his haunches. Hiccup realized he must have called to the other Deaths, as the dragons soon slid out of the caves. Two slowly flittered down to ground level. There were six other Deaths in the crag.

Immediately, Hiccup felt them touch his mind and saw visions of himself, Toothless, Astrid, Bluebell, and Jack all from different angles. It was rather disorienting, and he was soon glad to have Toothless to lean against. The sensations faded away, and Hiccup saw Astrid blink and sway for a moment before she too stood back upright.

'Welcome Hiccup and Astrid, Toothless, Bluebell and Jack.' a unfamiliar voice spoke to them. It was feminine and smooth. One of the dragons stepped forward to them. While Loki was a dark colored yellow, this dragon was slightly smaller and creamier shade of yellow than Loki. For the first time, Hiccup really studied the Whispering Deaths.

Their heads were rounded, their chins spiky and yellow colored. At the top of their head were rounded eyes, slightly cloudy and misty, and a faded shade of purple. The tops of their heads were a brick-red color, dark and deep. In between their eyes was a long curved spike, then a shock of separate spikes, leveling off before the straight spikes began near their wings. Their wings were long but not wide, spikes protruding at each supporting bone running through the appendages. Their entire upper body was long and could move similar to that of a snake. This ended at their legs, which were short and thick, but powerful. They didn't have individual digits for each claw, but instead were similar to humans with a foot and three claws protruding. Their tails were shorter than the Skrill and Timberjack's, but longer that Toothless's.

'This is my mate, Sigyn.' Hiccup smiled at the small joke as Loki introduced the female.

"Hi." Hiccup greeted.

"Hello." Astrid added. Jack flew off of her shoulder and landed in front of the Death. She lowered her head to his eye level, gazing at him with the pupil in her faint purple eye. Timberjack and Death stared at each other for a moment before Jack cooed at her, sitting back on his haunches.

'He approves that I will not try to hurt you.' Sigyn sounded amused at the little dragon. 'He says however, that I may use the one legged one for a chew toy if need be.'

"Not surprising. HE already does." Hiccup moaned, running his hand over his hair. He head Toothless laughing at him, the weird throaty sound. It just proved he was right about the dragon not liking him though.

That day, Hiccup met the other dragons, who didn't have names. They weren't permanent residents like Loki and Sigyn. He met them, and they all thought something at him. One sent him an image of flying over the forests, another sent him an image of swooping down on a deer, another showed him a fight scene between it and another dragon, the final two showed him the same picture, what he assumed was their hatchling growing up and flying from their nest in the winter. Astrid was likewise receiving the same treatment as him.

Hiccup traded all of them with his memories, some of feasts, meeting Toothless, the other dragons, the Green Death, and other things. The dragons all seemed to be intrigued by Hiccup, and Loki explained to him that they were only the second and third friendly human that they had met.

The Vikings spent the entire day with the dragons, communicating basic things through their minds. When the sun began to set, Hiccup and Astrid said their goodbyes and flew away on Toothless. Bluebell and Jack had left earlier, Bluebell needing to hunt and desiring to show Jack how.

"That was…amazing." Astrid said, not for the first time, as she stirred the rabbit meat in the pan, adding some various spices that Balder had given her during their lunch break that day.

"Tell me about it. There's literally no limit on what we could learn from the dragons!" Hiccup exclaimed. Toothless snorted behind him, rather annoyed that he hadn't received very much attention today. "Aww, come on Toothless. You have to give me a break. I've never met a actual talking dragon before."

The Night Fury snorted again, looking up at the fading light in the sky as Bluebell and Jack returned. Jack happily roared, bouncing over to Astrid when he landed. He tugged at her arm wrapping.

"What is it Jack?" Astrid asked, standing and following the little dragon to the edge of the clearing. There, he spread his wings and charged at a tree about three inches thick. He sliced through it near the bottom. It fell over towards the campsite, nearly hitting Hiccup on it's way to the ground. "That's great Jack!"

Astrid scratched the dragon under his chin, noting that he'd grown to be bigger than a terrible terror now, and was getting a bit large to be sleeping inside the tent. He'd slept outside a few times before, when he was exhausted and curled up next to Bluebell. She was going to have to get the dragon to start sleeping outside soon.

"Jack, you're gonna have to sleep outside. You're to big to sleep in the tent with me anymore." Astrid said. A hurt look appeared on Jack's face, and he curled up on the opposite side of the fire from her. She sighed. She didn't want to make him angry with her.

"Ah, he'll be fine. After all, when he's outside, he can do what he wants to." Hiccup said, reacting to her sigh. At least he wouldn't be waking up to a dragon treating him like a teething toy anymore.

"Yeah, you're right Hiccup. Outside he can stay up as late as he wants and sleep wherever he wants." Astrid said, catching on to what Hiccup was doing.

"Yep. He could even sleep in a tree if he wanted." Hiccup said, watching the little dragon perk up his ears. Jack rose and paced back over to Astrid, curling up beside her, but still to far away for her to scratch him.

They went to bed that night without having a dragon kicking at them or swatting them with his tail. It was nice.

* * *

><p>The next morning, Hiccup woke rather late and saw that Astrid was already gone. When he exited the tent he saw the water skins were gone to, and he guessed she was filling them up for later. Toothless and Bluebell were curled up at the edge of the campsite. Hiccup also noticed that Jack was nowhere in sight.<p>

"Must be with Astrid…" he muttered to himself.

As Hiccup was going about restarting the campfire, he tripped over his own leg and fell forward into the cool ashes from the previous night. When he rose, grime was caked all over his face and hair.

"Urgh!" He moaned, pushing himself into a sitting position. He heard Toothless laugh at him before a tail swung into his view, offering him some leverage on standing up. "Thanks bud. I gotta go wash up."

Hiccup made his way to the pond he'd bathed in the morning before, hoping to at least clean the soot off his face and out of his hair. He came through the trees and emerged at pond just as Astrid was leaving it.

All he could do was stop and gawk at her, unable to move. Unfortunately for Hiccup, she didn't have that problem. Astrid found the heaviest piece of clothing she had and hurled it at him. Toothless grabbed him by the shirt and pulled him out of the way just in time, as an armored skirt rushed by where his head had been.

"HICCUP!" Astrid roared at him as he sat stunned in the bushes Toothless had tossed him into. He knew he was in for it. Not a minute later, his doom came barreling through the trees at him. He winced as Astrid stopped in front of him, expecting a kick or bashing by a heavy object. Strangely, none of that came. Instead, she reaches down and helped him up.

"A-Astrid, I uh I was-" Hiccup stuttered, trying to explain himself.

"Shut up." Astrid said, roughly grabbing him by the arm and pulling him back to the pond. He stared helplessly at Toothless, silently begging for some sort of assistance. Toothless shook his head slightly, almost as if saying he wasn't stepping into this.

Astrid led Hiccup out onto a rock that extended out into the pond, grabbed him by the back of his vest and pants leg and threw him into the pond. After the splash, she walked off, ignoring him as he sputtered to the surface, coughing up water. Toothless appeared at the edge of the pond, peering at Hiccup and then looking back in the direction Astrid had gone. Hiccup thought he saw the dragon shiver, but he wasn't sure.

* * *

><p>When Hiccup returned to the camp, Astrid had lit the fire and was cooking breakfast. Hiccup tried to explain himself to her, but she ignored him. Hiccup sighed, resigning himself to the silent treatment for a while. As he was eating his breakfast in silence, he realized something.<p>

"Astrid, where's Jack?" Hiccup asked her, half expecting a reply. She paused in eating and looked over at Bluebell. Astrid pointed at the Nadder, and Hiccup turned to look at Bluebell, for the first time seeing that she was curled up around something.

Hiccup realized that Bluebell cared for Jack a great deal. It struck him as odd that she would. She'd always been indifferent to most people, though he knew that she must have a soft spot somewhere.

"Are you going to ignore me all morning?" Hiccup asked as he turned back to Astrid. Astrid looked up at him. Her anger had faded slightly, and Hiccup realized that there was something else mixed in with it. Could it be embarrassment?

"Maybe." she answered, quickly looking back down at her food. He was sure he'd seen her blush slightly before she'd lowered her face.

"You know, I was only coming to wash my face off. I tripped and fell in the ashes earlier." Hiccup said, trying to keep her talking.

"I know."

"Two words now! See, we're improving!" He heard Astrid laugh a bit.

"I'm still mad." she said, looking up at him.

"And look, there was three!" Hiccup said, gesturing to her.

"Shut up Hiccup." she said, smiling at him slightly. It was hard to be angry at someone who can make you laugh.

"Fine. I'm sorry for earlier, I didn't mean to…you know." Hiccup said, blushing at the memory.

"Well, I'm kind of sorry for throwing you in the pond." Astrid apologized.

"Kind of?"

"Yeah, I should have thrown you farther." She answered, smiling now. She saw him shrug, taking it as Hiccup usually did.

After they finished eating, Hiccup and Astrid flew to Balder's cabin. He had already left for the Whispering Death's valley, so Hiccup took Toothless down low over the trees, flying in so close that if Toothless had extended his legs, they would've scraped the treetops. Dragon and Rider pulled up sharply, flying perpendicular to the ground, rushing straight past Bluebell and Astrid before pulling even with the clouds.

"Ready Toothless?" Hiccup asked.

"Groar." Toothless affirmed, laying his ears back. One click of the tailfin later, and they were in a sharp spiraling dive. The duo pulled out just in time to land at the mouth of the crag.

"That was a nice display of acrobatics." Balder called from below as he leaned against Loki, climbing the steep banking.

"Don't tell him that, it'll give him a big head." Astrid said as she and Bluebell landed. Hiccup smiled as they walked into the valley as a group. And so began their study of the Whispering Death.

* * *

><p>It was probably the easiest Hiccup had ever learned about dragons. The first day alone he'd filled thirteen of the thirty questions he'd made. All of them were 'How, Why, Where, What' questions involving the dragon species. It was an in general questionnaire that he'd made so he'd have guidelines for researching the new Dragon Manual.<p>

The Whispering Death were migratory dragons. They lived up North during the spring and summers, and lower in the South when winter and fall came to the world. The dragons were omnivores, more so than any other dragon. They would eat fruits if they could find them, but preferred red meat to anything. Hunting rarely proved to be a challenge to them, a fact Hiccup noted while watching Loki paralyze a deer with his mental probes. They never had to worry about game running away once they'd located it and got within range.

Hiccup found their rituals to be just as fascinating. On the third day of his time with the Whispering Deaths, Sigyn explained the way Whispering Death's mated and raised their young. It was a privilege Hiccup never had with the other dragons. He'd had to learn about them by observation.

The Whispering Death chose a partner to fly with after they were typically six, and if they liked this partner, they would become mates. After a four year period, if they were still together, they would become mates for life, and would begin producing young. The young were hatched in late summer, and raised in the fall. Then, during the winter months they would fly to find game and learn how to use their minds to hunt. They would continue until they became proficient at it. When spring came again the dragons would fly north, and the young would now be treated as lesser members of the groups, no longer bound to their parents and free to go to any of their living areas they wished. They were now responsible for themselves.

There were places spread all across the eastern inland where the hundred or so Whispering Deaths would fly. Different ones were popular with different personalities of the dragons. Some liked to be near water, others trees or mountains. The one Hiccup and Astrid had visited however, was the westernmost Whispering Death homestead.

Hiccup also learned a lot of miscellaneous things about the Whispering Deaths, such as their ability to breathe fire depends on how much red meat they eat. If they don't get enough, their fires would be unable to even produce a puff of spoke. Loki also told Hiccup that Bone Nappers enjoyed the occasional company of the Whispering Death, and had been known to occasionally travel with them for short periods of time.

On the fifth day Hiccup and Astrid flew to the Whispering Death's valley, Loki and Balder greeted them with news.

"Hiccup, Lady Astrid, good morning!" Balder spoke as Toothless landed in the valley. Bluebell and Jack had gone hunting that morning.

"Good morning Balder." Hiccup said, suppressing a yawn. Astrid returned his greeting.

'Today, a guest has come to visit us here.' Loki spoke, 'My offspring, Nari.'

"That's great Loki!" Astrid said with a smile. They entered the crag and found Sigyn there with a smaller dragon, about the size of a large Gronkle. Loki introduced the younger Whispering Death to the Vikings as Nari. The young dragon rose from her sitting position and walked over to the newly arrived humans. She sat down again, sniffed them, then greeted them.

'Hello.' Nari spoke with her mind, just like her parents. "Hello." Hiccup said, extending his hand slightly, palm open. Nari sniffed him again before nosing him. All the while Hiccup could sense her in his mind by the vision he was receiving of himself. Nari then turned to Astrid, who returned her greeting in a similar way as Hiccup. Apparently satisfied with them, the young dragon turned to Toothless. The Night Fury had been watching Nari carefully as she sniffed his humans, and when she turned to him, they looked at each other, apparently exchanging thoughts, and Nari returned to where she had been conversing with her mother.

* * *

><p>"Hiccup, that village of yours, Berk was it?" Balder asked Hiccup as they sat around the table outside his cabin. They had gone out flying, Hiccup trying to get a full grasp of the Whispering Deaths abilities in the air. Because of their long bodies, they could twist and turn in odd ways in the air, and Toothless was challenged to keep up with them in aerobatics. But the Night Fury wasn't to be denied however, and out-flew them in the end. After their flight, they had gone to the cabin for lunch as usual. Sigyn and Loki sat behind Balder, just as Toothless and Bluebell lay behind Hiccup and Astrid. Nari and Jack were playing not far away, the Timberjack running about, attempting to catch Nari's agile tail.<p>

"Solidly located on the Meridian of Misery." Hiccup answered. Astrid smiled. It was something only the people from Berk would understand.

"I'm leaving for there tomorrow. We were waiting on Nari before departing." Balder spoke.

"You're already leaving?" Hiccup asked, slightly surprised. He and Balder had discussed leaving for Berk for the past few days, but he had expected him to wait a little longer.

"I may as well. I must admit…I'm excited about what it will be like now that Loki can be with me, with humans. I've had to hide my connection with these magnificent creatures for so long, it will be nice to finally be somewhere..." Balder trailed off, and Hiccup and Astrid felt elation swell through them, Loki transmitting Balder's feelings to them. Hiccup completely understood, and asked Loki to relay his memory of when Berk had first become friendly with the dragons. He saw Balder smile.

"So when exactly are you leaving tomorrow?" Astrid asked. She had received the broadcast of Hiccup's memory as well.

"Early morning." Balder answered.

"Okay. I suppose it would make sense for us to leave then too." Hiccup said with a shrug. Nearby, Jack tumbled head over heels in a roll, as Nari lifted her tail out of the way.

"What?" Astrid asked, caught off guard. "But we haven't even spent a full week studying the Whispering Death."

"I know, but we didn't need as long with them as we did with the others. And the faster we get done, the faster we can go home, Astrid. We already wasted a week searching, so it's been a month since we started out. We've seen three dragon species in that time. We've still got to find the Thunderdrum, the Scauldren, the Changeling, and a few other dragons." Hiccup spoke with his typical passion that he typically got whenever he talked about dragons. Astrid knew he already had his mind set and there was little chance of changing it.

'Would you mind if I came with you?' a voice popped into their conversation, adding a mental image of them sitting at the table outside the cabin.

Nari's question caught Hiccup off guard. He seemed confused for a minute, as if his mind were still processing the question. It would be great to have the young dragon along as a linguist, but it did surprise him that she wanted to come.

"That would he great, actually!" Astrid responded, knowing that even if Hiccup got mad at her later, it wouldn't matter, he was going to say yes anyways. The young dragon's skills were too valuable to pass up.

"She's right. It would be great to have you along with us. It would save us a lot of time." Hiccup agreed. Nari's emotions swelled over into their minds, and Hiccup got a glance into why she wanted to go. It got boring just moving around in a cycle, and the prospect of meeting other dragons, helping out someone who was a legend...

'I would love to meet other dragons, and I love finding new places!' Nari exclaimed, waves of emotion still pouring from her. There was a screeching, grinding sound that Hiccup recognized as the strange laughter that dragons made. He looked over at Loki and saw he was laughing.

'She reminds me much of myself when I was younger. But if I hadn't been like her, then likely Balder and I wouldn't be sitting here right now.' Loki spoke, and Hiccup saw a hazy set of memories flash in front of his eyes. Flying, journeying, and an injured, much younger Balder.

"Well…if you're going to leave in the morning as well, it would be wise to begin preparing now." Balder said. "I have a map of the North, but there are several islands here. Which one of these is Berk?"

Hiccup stood and walked over to where Balder was sitting. He studied the map for a moment, wondering how old it was. It was slightly yellowed and rather stiff. Hiccup didn't remember seeing it before, in the rather barren cabin, and realized it must have come out of the chest in the cabin.

"Berk isn't marked on here. It's actually a little farther out to sea than what this extends too." Hiccup said. He moved his finger just to the edge of the map. "It would be about right here if I'm not mistaken. We have a more current map. I can bring it to you in the morning."

"Thank you, it will be much appreciated. I have a few gifts for you tomorrow. Now, you should probably be on your way, and make as much use of the remaining daylight as you can." Balder said, patting Hiccup on the shoulder.

Astrid and Hiccup returned to their camp and packed the supplies they had used while staying in the forested valley. It didn't take a long time, but by the time they'd cooked and cleaned their dishes, the sun was fading out of the sky.

That night, Hiccup's dreams were filled with talking dragons and Astrid. And for the first time, he realized that his dreams had come true.

* * *

><p>Author's Notes:<p>

Alright! I'm sorry it took so long for this Chapter to get put up on here, but I was actually finishing the writing. Just about an hour ago, I put the Epilogue out on Deviant Art. So, Thousand Miles is officially finished up. I'm looking for a new beta reader now too, so...*shrug*

Thank you for reading Thousand Miles, as always, now please Read and Review, for some R&R.

(All uses of the name Bluebell are credit to: Vrenna Vrien or Enchantable on FF Net)


	9. Chapter 9

Journey of a Thousand Miles: Chapter 9

Hiccup woke before the sun rose, shivering at the chill in the air, and because Astrid had stolen the blanket. He remembered his pleasant dreams from the previous night and smiled. He moved as carefully as possible so he didn't wake the sleeping girl.

When he exited the tent into the cool pre-dawn air, Toothless gave a little grumble of greeting, walked over Hiccup, and nosed him. Hiccup scratched the Night Fury affectionately as he sat on the log that had been dragged up to the fire, poking the coals over to the pieces of unburned wood, trying to stir the fire back to life. Toothless snorted before blasting it with a small ball of fire. It immediately roared to life, crackling and popping with heat.

"Thanks bud." Hiccup said. He added two logs to the fire then rose and leaned against Toothless, slightly stiff in the early morning. He made his way over to the saddle bags lying beside the tent and dug out the maps he'd brought, and as an after thought grabbed a piece of parchment and his charcoal stick.

Hiccup then returned back to the fireside, using the warm light to look through the maps for the one he wanted. After finding the one detailing Berk and the surrounding sea and islands, Hiccup picked up the paper and began to write. He wrote a page long letter to his father, including some things for him to tell Gobber and Fishlegs. Hiccup then folded the paper ands sketched the skull symbol on the outside of it. "I'll really have to think of a name for that thing…"

* * *

><p>Astrid woke up to the smell of breakfast. When she opened her eyes, she saw that light was just beginning to filter through the tent's rough canvas sides. The next thing she saw was the pan of meat, eggs, and something she assumed Hiccup had received from Balder. It looked rather gooey, but smelled good. She devoured the food hungrily, then folded the blankets to stow away before exiting the tent. Dawn had just fully broken over the forest, and Hiccup was just finishing tying the last knot on Toothless's saddle bags. Bluebell was laying not far away, already saddled and waiting.<p>

"Morning." Hiccup said, standing up.

"Morning Hiccup." Astrid said. She stood eye to eye with him for a moment, then an evil grin spread over her face. Hiccup gulped, unsure of what was going to happen. She grabbed him by the shirt, pulling him roughly to her. He caught himself by her shoulders, rocking her slightly. They stood there for a second before kissing each other. As soon as they broke apart, Astrid smiled. "You're getting better. Just means I'll have to change things up on you."

"It never will lose it's effect." Hiccup replied, smiling dazedly.

"Where's Jack?" Astrid asked as she began to pack the blankets and padding from their tent into Bluebell's saddle bags.

"He's at that pond skimming for fish." Hiccup answered, trying to remove the pole from the tent. He failed miserably and wound up knocking himself in the head with it. He rubbed his forehead lightly, making sure he wasn't bleeding.

"Be more careful. You might hurt the pole if you keep hitting yourself with it, and it's the only tent we have left." Astrid joked, taking the other two of the poles out and handing them to Hiccup, who stowed them in the waiting slots in the saddlebags. Astrid folded up the canvas into the tightest square she could manage, and stuffed it roughly into one of the larger pouches on Bluebell's saddlebags.

"Alright then…I guess it's time to head out." Hiccup spoke, scratching the back of his neck and peering around uncertainly.

"Where to?" Astrid asked, realizing he'd never told her their next destination. Hiccup paused for a moment, before digging into Toothless's saddlebags. He pulled out the map they were using, along with a folded piece of paper. Suddenly, it struck Hiccup that he wouldn't be the only one who might want to write home.

"Astrid, do you want to send a letter to your parents?" Hiccup asked, turning to face her where she was already mounted on Bluebell. She gave him a confused stare, wondering how he went from where they were going to writing a letter home.

"Sure…but how are we going to get it to- oh! Balder and Loki." Astrid said, remembering that they were leaving for Berk. Hiccup offered her a piece of paper and a charcoal pencil, which she took. "Now, what about our destination."

"Well, we still need to find the Boneknappers, and their mysterious dragons, and hard to find." Hiccup said, climbing aboard Toothless. He patted the dragon on his neck, the shifted the fin so they could take off. "And that's just one of the four we have left to find."

"Still not hearing a direct answer." Astrid called. Hiccup shrugged as Toothless climbed higher into the air.

"The Scauldren and Thunderdrum live by the sea. Berk actually had a native population of them at one time, but they were all killed off when the first Vikings settled there." Hiccup said to Astrid as she and Bluebell joined them in the air. "The Bone Nappers are rare and reclusive dragons, and mostly live near mountains. The Changelings live pretty much anywhere. Mountains, forests, sea caves."

Astrid sighed, knowing that she wouldn't get a direct answer because he didn't have one.

"Lets hurry, we're late as it is." Astrid said. Jack saw them climbing and went for one last skim over the pond before climbing into the air and falling into place between Bluebell and Toothless.

* * *

><p>Not long after taking flight, they arrived at the Whispering Death's crag. All of the dragons were stirring, and as they landed, and an excited Nari rushed up to them.<p>

'I can't wait! I'm so excited I'm twitching!' Nari exclaimed, excitement rushing out of her. Hiccup laughed, swinging off of Toothless. Astrid stayed on Bluebell, scribbling away on the paper Hiccup had given her.

Hiccup immersed himself in the crowd of the dragons, only to discover that the Deaths were all saying their goodbyes, memories rushing around so fast Hiccup's head spun, and he was only able to catch a glimpse or two of each before the next rushed in. Eventually, Balder was able to extricate himself from them and find Hiccup near the edge of the gathering.

"Ah, young Hiccup." Balder spoke, walking over and sitting down on a rock. He swung his small pack around, digging into it and pulling out a book. It was bound in leather with no markings distinguishing as to what it was. He handed it to Hiccup who opened it, wondering what was inside. He saw illustrations of dragons of all kinds. "These are stories and legends involving dragons. I'm not sure where it came from, but I found it a long time ago at the port city where I learned my trade."

"Wow…" Hiccup said. The book was the find of a lifetime. He recognized a few of the legends, like why the Terrible Terrors were so short, but others were foreign and strange sounding to him. "Thanks Balder. This is great!"

"You are welcome." the man said, smiling.

"Could you do me a favor?" Hiccup asked. He dug into his pocket, pulling out the letter he had written. "Could you take this letter to my father? He's the chief of Berk, and kinda hard to miss. Stoick the _Vast_ really fits him."

"I would be happy to." Balder said, chuckling. He took the letter from him and tucked it into his pack.

"I've also got the map that you needed." Hiccup said. He rose from the rock where he had been sitting and went over to Toothless. He opened one of the pouches on the saddle bags and pulled out the folded map. He handed it to Balder as Loki detached himself and came over to them.

'We are ready to go.' Loki said, anticipation flowing through him. Hiccup looked over to Bluebell, wondering if Astrid had said goodbye yet. She wasn't sitting on the dragon, so he looked back over to the group of dragons. They were still crowded around something.

"We will be in a minute. Astrid's gotta say goodbye." Hiccup said, laughing when Astrid exited the crowd with Sigyn, holding her head and looking rather dizzy. She stumbled over to them, leaning slightly against Sigyn to keep her balance.

"Balder, I have a letter for my parents, and I was wondering if-" Astrid spoke when she was close enough.

"I'd be happy to take it to Berk for you." Balder interjected. "But now, I believe it is time for us to get into the air."

Astrid handed him the letter, which he tucked into his pack along with Hiccup's. He then walked over to Loki and patted him. He pulled a rolled piece of leather out of his pack and fastened to the dragon's neck. He then mounted the dragon, close behind his head, similar to the way a Zippleback would be ridden.

Not long after, they took to the air. The other Whispering Deaths flew with them until they made it to the mouth of the valley. After a few hours of flying, they made it to the river, and landed for a short break.

"Lady Astrid, I have a gift for you before we part ways." Balder spoke as they filled water skins. He again dug into his pack. He pulled out a headband. It was ornate and made of silver, interesting patterns running through it. Astrid blinked as he handed it to her.

"Its…amazing." Astrid said. "Where did you…?"

"Long ago back when I lived in the city, there was a girl I fell in love with. We were close, and eventually, I shared a part of my life I had kept hidden. She…could not come to terms with it. She was the first and last person that ever met Loki. I made that for her, to give to her that night." Balder said. There was a bittersweet tone in his voice. "After a series of events, she was considered crazy for accusing me of keeping a pet dragon. The last time I saw her, she cursed my name."

Loki nosed Balder gently on the shoulder.

"Well, my young friends, here we part ways. We're going to fly across the mountain range to Berk." Balder said. He stepped back onto the saddle. "Farewell. Take care of yourselves."

'Be safe.' Loki said. He looked at Nari, presumably adding something else.

'Fly fast and free, warriors of the wing.' Sigyn spoke. She too looked at Nari. Then, the two Deaths and Balder took to the skies, gaining altitude and angling themselves towards the north. Not long after they were just black silhouettes against the sun.

* * *

><p>Two days later, Hiccup and Astrid sat at the mouth of the river, watching the water flow into the ocean. They had arrived at the mouth near midday. After going swimming, they had sat down to plot out where they were going to go, and when.<p>

"There's a large labyrinth of sea-caves here. It's know to be a refuge of Thunderdrums and Scauldrens." Hiccup pointed to a place on the map that was circled in red. It was a good distance from where they were. He then moved over to a spot in the mountains far in the south. "This is where a Viking raiding crew killed a Bone Napper a few years ago, while stopped to resupply."

"I remember that." Astrid said. "My father was part of the crew."

"Yeah. And here, this island, there are Changelings, and is the exclusive home of the Giant Bee-Eaters." Hiccup pointed to a large island, the size of Berk. "The Giant Bee-Eaters look a lot like giant flowers with teeth."

"So we first go to the sea caves and find the Scauldrens and Thunderdrums?" Astrid asked.

"Yeah. We'll camp here for the night then fly to the sea caves. It's going to take a few days." Hiccup said. He rolled up the map and they went back to where their gear was. After setting up camp they went back to the ocean to swim.

* * *

><p>Over the next three days, they flew during the day, at a gentle pace so as not to tire the dragons. They typically stopped early to set up camp and find water and food. By the evening of the third day, a small city had come into view on the horizon. It was a little larger than Berk when seen from the air. Hiccup was hesitant to approach the village. Even if the inhabitants were friendly to them, they would very likely not be towards Toothless and the others.<p>

After they set up camp, they went swimming again while the dragons flew off to feed. Soon enough, the sun was going down, and Hiccup and Astrid returned to the camp to cook. It didn't take long at all before they were sleeping.

Astrid snapped alert. She wasn't sure what it was that had awoken her, but she knew that something was wrong. Then she heard the call again. It was indistinct, but someone was yelling, likely looking for someone.

'They've been at it for an hour now.' Nari's voice sounded in her head. 'I believe they're looking for a lost offspring.'

Astrid reached over and gently shook Hiccup. He mumbled something, rolling over. She grabbed her axe from the corner of the tent and dropped it on him.

"OWW!" Hiccup roared awake, throwing the axe off as he sat up. "Why would you-"

"Shh! Listen!" Astrid hissed at him. He was quiet for a moment before he heard the cries.

"They're looking for someone." Hiccup said. Astrid nodded. She pulled on her over layers and left the tent. Hiccup followed not long after, pulling on his vest.

'What are you going to do?' Nari asked, watching the humans intently. Bluebell and Toothless were both awake too, watching them with raised heads. Jack was curled up at the base of a tree, still sleeping.

"We're going to find whoever they're searching for." Hiccup answered. "Can you fly over the search party and find out exactly who they're looking for?"

'Sure.' Nari took to wing, flying in the direction of the faint torchlight glow she saw in the air. She circled overheard, scanning the unknowing minds below her. She saw a picture of a little girl, happy and smiling. She saw dark visions of her twisted and bent in odd ways in the mind of a sobbing woman. With that, she banked and flew back to the camp.

"What'd you find out?" Hiccup asked, finishing strapping the saddle on Toothless.

'A young girl is lost in the woods. Most of the village is out looking for her, but no one knows where she is.' Nari answered, adding the hazy memories of the smiling girl to her thoughts.

"You don't know how long she's been lost do you?" Astrid asked from her spot on Bluebell's back.

'No.'

"Either way, we need to help." Hiccup said, climbing into Toothless's saddle. "We'll split up. Toothless and I will search in the north. Astrid and Bluebell, search the east. Nari, you take the south, but be careful going over the town."

The three dragons took to the air, the cool of the night rushing past their bodies and chilling their riders. They broke in their assigned directions. Jack blinked sleepily in the campsite below, before crawling into the tent and curling up to sleep there.

* * *

><p>Toothless was skimming low over the trees, well ahead of the torchlight of the searching villagers. The moon alone was enough light for him to see. After all, he was in his element, the night. Hiccup was looking over the side, trying to look for anything Toothless might have missed, not that it would be much. Toothless gave a small grunt and turned his head down and left. Hiccup sat back up in the saddle, adjusting the fin to Toothless's pointing. They soon landed along the bank of a small creek, shallow, but with high banking.<p>

Toothless jumped down into the creek bed, splashing Hiccup with cold water and gritty sand as he landed heavily. Soon, Hiccup's ears were able to make out sobbing, and in the faint moonlight, he saw the little girl from Nari's vision sitting on a rock in the creek bank. He carefully slid off of Toothless, knowing that his prosthetic was going to be messed up, but not caring. The little girl looked up, fear in her eyes when she heard the splashing. There was a man carefully approaching her.

"Hi there." the man said, kneeling in the water to be closer to her level. "My name's Hiccup, and this is my friend Toothless."

She stared up at the black shape standing over the man.

"I-I'm…snf…Mara." the little girl said. Toothless reached his head over Hiccup's shoulder, cooing a soothing sound at the little girl. She reached out and gently touched him. Toothless cooed again, rubbing gently against her, trying not to knock her over. She giggled, and Toothless licked her.

"C'mon Mara, we'll get you home. There are some people looking for you, and their worried." Hiccup reached out and took the girl into his arms, sliding her onto his hip. As he stood, his leg flashed in the light.

"How'd that happen mister?" The girl tugged on his sleeve, pointing to his prosthetic. Hiccup smiled, remembering it.

"I got beat up by a big, bad dragon." Hiccup answered. He stepped to the creek bank, receiving a boost from Toothless as he climbed. He reached the top and moved aside for the dragon to jump up. He did, and Hiccup heard Mara gasp she was likely just now seeing the dragon for what he was.

"You're friends with dragons?" she asked, the shock in her voice apparent.

"Where I come from we are. The big bad dragon that beat me up was making them bad." Hiccup said.

"What happened to that dragon?" The little girl asked.

"Would you like to sit on Toothless's back?" Hiccup asked. The little girl was getting to heavy for him to hold.

"Can I?" Mara asked, excited. Hiccup laughed and set her on Toothless's back, careful to make sure she didn't fall. They continued walking, slowly in the direction of the search party.

"The big bad dragon got beat up by Toothless and ran away." Hiccup answered her earlier question.

"How big was he?"

"He was bigger than a hundred houses."

"Really?"

"Yep."

"Mara!" a voice echoed through the woods, suddenly closer than Hiccup remembered. Mara looked up from where she was rubbing Toothless's scales in amazement.

"Over here!" She called out. Hiccup reached up and took her off Toothless's back.

"I have to go now." Hiccup told her.

"No! Please don't!" She said, face tearing up again. There were thudding footsteps, growing closer, and Hiccup inwardly cursed.

"Toothless, go." Hiccup said. The dragon looked at him, clearly refusing. "Go. We don't have time to discuss this, but I have and idea. Go find Astrid and Bluebell."

The Night Fury grumbled as Hiccup quickly moved the pins around, giving him control over his own fin, and the dragon took off, flying away from them before climbing higher in the sky and being lost in the night.

"Why'd he have to go?" Mara asked. Hiccup looked at her, and thought carefully before answering.

"So he doesn't get in trouble." he answered.

"Mara! Where are you?" A call came out again, and Hiccup answered this time.

"Over here!" He called. The thudding footsteps came closer until the forest was illuminated in torchlight.

"Mara!" A man's exhausted voice said, heavy with relief. Hiccup watched the man, who took the girl into his large arms and hugged her close.

"Hi daddy." The little girl mumbled against the mans chest. She was clearly getting sleepy.

"Oh…my baby." the large man said, and he looked up at Hiccup, who was standing rather awkwardly, unsure what to do with himself.

"Hi." Hiccup said, not knowing what else to say. The man gave him a confused look as more people arrived at where they were, more torches in their hands. Hiccup gulped, wondering if his hastily formed plan would work.

* * *

><p>Hiccup was sitting in the chief of the village's hut, enjoying the warm beverage that he had been handed. He wasn't sure what it was, but it and the fire were doing a good job of fighting the chill he'd received from his adventure in the creek.<p>

The man who had found them was apparently the chief of the village, making the girl his daughter. He was a tall, broad shouldered man, every bit a proud Viking. He had dark brown hair and a short beard, and other people addressed him as Chief Fargoth.

After they'd been found in the woods, they were rushed back to town and into the house. Hiccup was mostly forgotten when a healer rushed in to examine the girl, and the other people kept at bay outside. At one point, a sobbing, large, and blonde haired woman came rushing in and went into the room where they'd taken Mara. It was just Hiccup and a man with black hair, shorter than Fargoth, but apparently his second in command. He was the one who had handed Hiccup the drink before taking some into the girls room for the gathered people.

Eventually, the healer exited, assuring the woman that her daughter would be fine, she just needed rest. The smaller, black haired man escorted the healer to the door, then made an announcement of good health outside before returning to Fargoth's side.

That was when their attention turned to Hiccup.

* * *

><p>"Hi." Hiccup said meekly, sitting in the cushy chair by the fire as Fargoth and the black haired man took seats in the less comfortable chairs around the fire as the large woman exited the room into another doorway.<p>

"Hello." Fargoth answered. Suspicions were heavy in his voice.

"So…my name's Hiccup." Hiccup continued.

"I'm known as Fargoth the Strong, leader of this village. This is my second, Ralbert the Quiet." Fargoth gestured to the man sitting in the chair beside him. Ralbert inclined his head slightly to Hiccup.

"So…um…I suppose you want to know who I am and where I came from?" Hiccup asked, nervously.

"That would be nice, yes." Fargoth answered.

"I'm from Berk." Hiccup began.

"I have an uncle from Berk, on my mother's side. Maybe you know him? Gobber is his name." Ralbert interrupted.

"Gobber? He's like…my uncle or something. He was also the man who taught me how to smith." Hiccup answered, excited to have a potential connection.

"Ah. Well next time you see him, tell him I said hello." Ralbert said, discouraged by the glare he'd received from Fargoth.

"So…Well, I'm Hiccup, Stoick's son." Hiccup said. "And recently in Berk, we came to a new understanding of the dragons…"

* * *

><p>Hiccup's tale seemed almost insane to the Vikings sitting across from him. They sat, their mouth's hung agape, as Hiccup related the events of how he'd destroyed the Green Death. When he'd finished his tale with how he'd set out to rewrite the Dragon Manual, Fargoth stood and went to the small window, facing outward. Ralbert simply sat, brows knitted together, pondering the tale.<p>

"Well, that does explain the reports we've had from passing ships about Berk now being a dragon-haven." Fargoth spoke. "We wrote the trader off as a drunk and dismissed his story as a fairy tale. After all, Berk has always been famed for its fearsome dragon fighters. So, how do I know that you're not both crazy?"

Fargoth looked at Hiccup, his face blank, waiting for a reply. That was when the woman from earlier came back into the room. She answered for Hiccup.

"Look at the boy's face Fargoth. Is that the face of a liar? No. And his leg, that injury could only have come from a terrible battle." the woman said. She handed Fargoth a bowl filled with something that smelled like a delicious stew. She handed one to Ralbert who thanked her graciously, then handed one more to Hiccup. "I'm Hana, Mara's mother, and his wife."

She gestured back to Fargoth who shrugged with one shoulder, the other occupied by holding his stew.

"Thank you. It smells delicious." Hiccup said, taking the bowl of stew he was offered. It tasted delicious, especially after not having a real home cooked meal for several weeks. It had just the right mix of spices, and the meat was tender and soft, as were the vegetables.

Fargoth returned to his chair and Hana took a seat in the final of the four chairs. Hiccup quickly devoured the stew, then slowly stood, stiff from the hours of little movement.

"If you don't mind, could I go get my friends?" Hiccup asked. "They're expecting me back."

'We're already here.' The voice shocked everyone in the room. Hiccup recognized it and quickly explained that it was a friend of his. There came a knock at the door, and Hana rushed to answer it.

"Hi Astrid!" Hiccup called as she entered. Toothless, Bluebell, Nari, and Jack hesitated outside the house, before Hiccup gestured for them to enter.

"Fargoth, these are my friends that I was telling you about." Hiccup said, gesturing at the dragons. All three of the older Vikings in the room were wide eyed as Toothless knocked Hiccup over and licked him.

It was a long night, filled with plenty of storytelling on Hiccup and Astrid's part, and a slightly awe-inspiring introduction of the dragons.

* * *

><p>Author's Notes:<p>

Alright, readers! I hope you're enjoying reading the tale that I'm spinning out before your very eyes! And if you are, please let me know by reviewing or sending me your thoughts in a PM. I take the time to read all of the messages I get, and to reply to them. And I usually send a Llama Badge along with it, but this isn't DevArt, so I can't do that. But know that you get a honorary Llama badge. So, what do you think is going to happen with Hiccup and the Villagers? Will they burn them at the stake?


	10. Chapter 10

Journey of a Thousand Miles: Chapter 10

Over the past weeks, Hiccup had forgotten what it was like to sleep in a bed. It was nice, soft, and he fell asleep quickly in it, but it was missing something. He knew that it was the lack of a certain blonde Vikingess near him. It was also due to this lacking that Hiccup didn't wake until several hours after dawn.

Their group had been ushered to different places in the village due to a lack of bedding in Fargoth's home, or any one place in particular. Hiccup had been taken to Ralbert's home and give his spare bed. There, Ralbert had told him that he was still unmarried, but the spare bedroom was for the children he eventually hoped to have.

Hiccup didn't know where Astrid had been taken to. However, Bluebell, Jack, and Nari had all gone with her, so she was sure to be safe wherever she was.

Hiccup sat up in the bed, and turned his body towards the edge, letting his legs hang off. He was in a small room, just large enough for the bed pressed against one wall and Toothless on the floor beside him. He stifled a small yawn as he leaned over to buckle on his prosthetic and pull on his boot. As he did so, Toothless cracked open an eye from his place on the floor. Hiccup smiled at him at scratched the top of his head.

When Hiccup had fully dressed, he exited the small room that had been furnished to him, Toothless close behind. Ralbert's house was small by Berk standards. It consisted of the main room, Ralbert's room, and the room Hiccup had been given. The main room of the house Hiccup had entered was nothing more than a fireplace, a small stove, a larder, a table and four chairs, and two armchairs.

After retrieving the few coins he had from the saddlebags stowed in an empty corner of the room, Hiccup exited the small home with Toothless at his side. The small street outside was deserted. Hiccup knew from his trek the previous night that he was somewhere near the eastern edge of the village, so he ventured back the way he'd come the previous night. Of course, with Ralbert leading him last night, they'd woven between buildings, but Hiccup just stuck to the street.

People going about their daily business stared at the dragon and rider as they passed. Hiccup didn't know if the attention was a good thing or a bad thing. The people of Torp had never dealt with dragons like Berk and other more northern villages had, but they'd grown up with the legends and stories of dragons being evil, vile creatures that stole food and destroyed homes. It was for this reason that Hiccup was on his guard as he made his way through the village.

Hiccup kept his hand on Toothless's side as they walked. Toothless didn't seem to be bothered by the people staring, but it was bothering his rider to have so many eyes on them. When they reached the outskirts of the village, a rather large and imposing wooden wall of felled pines with spiked tops, Hiccup climbed on Toothless's back and they rose into the air.

After soaring high around the village and not seeing Astrid and Bluebell anywhere, Hiccup had Toothless take them back to their campsite. It was a short flight, and as they landed in the clearing, Hiccup saw that the tent and supplies they'd left behind were already gone.

"Astrid must have been here already." Hiccup said to Toothless. "So what are we going to do?"

"Grar." Toothless answered. They took to the wing again, skimming low over the treetops and climbing back high into the air over the village, where the buildings looked more like pebbles and bark chips. When they'd leveled out over the city, Toothless angled them towards the southwest corner of the sea-side village. This course took them near the docks, and Hiccup realized that Toothless must be hungry.

They landed away from the cleaning and gutting stalls, where many of the fresh fish were stored in barrels and tanks while waiting to be cleaned. Hiccup took a couple of fish out of a barrel and tossed them to Toothless. He snapped them out of midair, enjoying the salty taste of the fresh cod.

"You have to pay for those, you know?" a familiar voice said from behind Hiccup. He turned around and saw Astrid standing behind him with Bluebell a few paces behind her.

"Sorry miss, but I seem to have left all my coins at home." Hiccup retorted.

"Just means I'll have to throw you on a pyre." Astrid threatened, taking a step towards him. Hiccup took a step back, aware of the mischievous gleam in her eye. She lunged forward, grabbing him and pulling him into a kiss. Hiccup smiled against her, happy to have at last found her.

"Sorry miss, but I was looking for my girlfriend when this useless reptile got hungry." Hiccup explained when she released him. Toothless grumbled from where he was attempting to lift a barrel lid. Astrid punched him on his right arm, hard enough it went numb for a few seconds before it started tingling.

"So where have you been all morning?" Astrid asked as they walked through the streets. She seemed genuinely happy to be back around people.

"Oh, you know, around." Hiccup said. In truth, he didn't really know. He'd just wandered aimlessly until flying away.

"C'mon." Astrid said. She led him back through the streets of amazed onlookers to the Chief's house. Once there, Hiccup was greeted enthusiastically by little Mara who'd playing fetch with Jack.

"Hiccup!" the little girl's face brightened when he entered the same room from the night before. Hiccup smiled, patting her on the head when she hugged him. The little girl returned to throwing the leather ball that Jack had been chasing, giggling as she watched the Timberjack fail to come to a stop and slide into the wall. It reminded Hiccup of his cheek, and Jack's bite. The final scab had fallen off just a few days ago.

"There you are!" Ralbert said, entering the room. He motioned for them to follow him through the doorway Hana had emerged from carrying her stew. The doorway led to large kitchen, especially by Berk standards. It was nearly the size of the bakery's kitchen.

Center of the kitchen, there was a large table where both Hana and Fargoth were rose and went over to a range that was situated against one wall, one that was producing very little heat. She scooped out a bowl of soup and set it down in front of Hiccup at the table.

"I'm sure you must be starved. Ralbert left you all by yourself, and you wandered off and got lost didn't you?" Hana asked, casting Ralbert a dirty look as she sat down.

Hiccup chuckled, then answered, "Yes actually. Toothless and I flew back to our campsite last night before we came back to town."

"I already packed all the supplies up while you were sleeping." Astrid said.

A conversation soon started up, with stories being traded across the table. Eventually, Hana left to go out to the market for more food. Astrid and Mara left with her, leaving the three Viking men sitting at the table. Ralbert was relating his story about how he'd once nearly been carried off by a swarm of Terrible Terrors when he visited his Uncle Gobber in Berk as a child.

"-And by some miracle, I suddenly woke up as they were lifting me off the ground. I freaked out. It startled them so much, they dropped me. They were a confused mess at my sudden awakening!" Ralbert said, earning a chuckle from Hiccup. The boy was beginning to realize that Ralbert the Quiet was an intentional misnomer. Once they'd gotten to know each other, he'd rambled out several long and quite entertaining stories.

"Well now Hiccup, I'd also like you to be a guest of honor at our feast tonight, to celebrate something I'd never thought I'd see. Peace with the dragons." Fargoth spoke. He and Ralbert shared a chuckle, while Hiccup only nervously grinned. Public speaking was definitely not his element.

* * *

><p>Uproarious feasts happened every month or two in Berk, and Torp seemed to be no exception to the Viking way. The people were wild with excitement after Fargoth gave his speech, a condensed version of the events that had taken place in Berk, and his proclamation for their village: Peace with the dragons. Then, he put Hiccup on the spot.<p>

It was a fight for the young Viking just to be heard in the large feasting hall as people murmured to each other when he took the center stage. He gulped nervously as he peered at the crowd, then spotted Astrid standing at the front. He focused his vision solely on her as he spoke, as loudly as was possible for him.

"People of Torp, I am Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third, son of Stoick the Vast of Berk. I am the first known person to ride a Dragon." Hiccup gulped. He hated announcing that title, but Fargoth had insisted he do so. "In Berk, we now have peace with the dragons. I've come here today on a journey to help keep that peace. It was not my intent to change the way of life here. It is simply a side effect of my journey."

Hiccup paused for breath before continuing, staring at Astrid all the while.

"And now, thanks to the dragons, your Chief's daughter was found. And again thanks to your Chief, the people of Berk will now have valiant allies. In Berk, there are people that will be willing to help you adjust to life with dragons, and with the Chief's permission, they will be coming here to help."

Hiccup finished his speech on that note, stepping back from the edge of the raised platform at the back of the hall. As he looked up from the blonde Vikingess to the crowd in front of him, an enormous cheer erupted from the crowd. Ralbert walked forward and raised Hiccup's hand in the air. The cheers grew louder, and the feast began.

* * *

><p>It reminded Hiccup a lot of his first post-Green Death feast. The people were overjoyed with relief that the war was finally at an end. Humans no longer had to fear the creatures, as long as communication could go on between them. It gave Hiccup a second look at what Berk was like after the Green Death's flaming nose dive into the earth.<p>

The people were simply happy that there would be no more killings with neither side making headway against the other. No senseless killings or burning of their homes and livelihood. There was a way out, and it was in the form of a strange boy with a missing leg and a legendary dragon.

Of course, Astrid was hailed too, but not nearly as much as Toothless and Hiccup. Toothless had been waiting outside the feasting hall when Hiccup had given his speech. However, when the feast began in earnest, he'd been ushered in with all the other dragons. As the night wore on, he'd flown up into the rafters to avoid the over curious humans.

Hiccup was just as busy with people prying him with questions about the dragons. Hiccup answered them to the best of his knowledge, eventually getting tired of repeated questions and such. After everyone one had eaten, the wild part of the feast started. Vikings singing, Vikings dancing, Vikings drinking.

Hiccup found himself sitting one of the benches, as far away from the dancing as possible. The Viking saw Nari fly over the crowd, doing a sharp loop then landing. He smiled at the dragon's antics. Toothless finally came down from the roof, landing beside Hiccup and grumbling to himself in his draconic tones. That was when Astrid emerged from the crowd, flushed with excitement. She'd spotted Hiccup when Toothless had come down, and made her way over to him.

"Come on, let's dance!" she grabbed Hiccup by the hand and tried to pull him from his seat.

"Uh…no thanks. I'm not a very good dancer." Hiccup said. In truth, he couldn't dance. Not from lack of trying, but from lack of coordination. And that was back when he had two feet.

"Aw, come on Hiccup!" Astrid pulled him harder this time. Not wanting to lose another limb, Hiccup stood.

"Astrid, I can't dance!" Hiccup admitted as she tugged him towards the dance floor. She paused and turned around and looked at him.

"I know," she said, leaning in and kissing him. "But you're still coming out here with me."

"I thought you didn't want to be seen in public with me!" Hiccup was grasping at straws now, desperate to keep himself off the dance floor.

"I said I was embarrassed by other people…and I'm trying to get better." Astrid answered, a slightly hurt look on her face.

"Fine. You win." Hiccup sighed. He let Astrid drag him out onto the dance floor. She led him through several steps before he succeeded in tripping over both of them and sent them sprawling onto the floor. A general uproar of laughter went up from the crowd as Hiccup struggled to untangle himself from Astrid, who was laughing along with everyone else.

* * *

><p>The next morning, Hiccup woke up blearily in Ralbert's house. Memories of last night danced in his head as his bruises from the falls he'd had 'dancing' throbbed. He rolled out of the bed, pulling on his clothes he had thrown aside when he'd stumbled into bed, dog tired. Toothless cracked open an eye.<p>

When Hiccup entered the main room of the house, Ralbert was still asleep on the rug by the fire. Hiccup chuckled as he stepped over him to exit the house. Toothless rose when he heard the door, following after Hiccup and laughed his rough, grating laugh when he saw Ralbert laid on the floor.

When they were outside, there were few Vikings out at the early hour, most sleeping off their drunken stupors. Hiccup and Toothless were hailed by a few people as they walked, most calling good morning and adding a good humored comment about his dancing skills. Eventually, after making several wrong turns, Hiccup arrived at Fargoth's house.

Inside, Hana was already making breakfast for them, refusing any help Hiccup offered her. Astrid arrived not long after him, Nari in tow. Bluebell had taken Jack hunting. Nari recounted some of the faces of the Vikings she had spoken to the previous night, remarking on their expressions when they realized that she, the dragon, was speaking to them.

'Most of the time, Astrid had to convince them they hadn't gone mad. Eventually, by the end of the night, most of the word and spread, and a few hesitant people had come to talk to me. That's how I got roped into dancing.' Nari explained. Fargoth entered the kitchen just as the food was served.

A conversation about last night's events, mostly involving Hiccup's complete lack of coordination was soon started.

"You looked like some kind of newborn baby deer out there last night!" Fargoth chuckled heartily.

"He's going to try and blame it on his leg, but really, it's due to his complete lack of coordination." Astrid spoke with a teasing smile at Hiccup.

"Some people just don't have the talent for dancing." Hana said, attempting to come to the young Viking's rescue.

'He doesn't seem to have the talent for walking either.' Nari added in an image of Hiccup snaring himself on his own boot.

"Some people don't have the talent for learning dragons aren't evil." Hiccup retorted, going for the throat on the debate.

"Some people couldn't have done it without help." Astrid countered.

"By the way, I've been meaning to ask, when are you planning on leaving?" Fargoth interrupted. Hiccup paused and looked at Astrid. She shrugged, realizing what he was thinking.

"Today." Hiccup answered. "It's been fun being back among people, but truthfully, we need to get back to our journey. The faster we get it done, the faster we go home."

"So you're headed to the dragon caves then?" Hana asked as she cleaned up the plates from breakfast.

"Yes. From our map, it shouldn't be too far from here." Hiccup answered.

"It's not. Maybe a few hours by ship. Likely faster by dragon." Fargoth said.

"Then we'll leave this afternoon, I guess." Astrid said.

During the course of the day, Hana took Hiccup and Astrid with her, getting them some more supplies for their journey. She procured a slab of jerky for them, another cooking pot, and a few other assorted items. The shop owners that they visited refused payment for the items Hiccup and Astrid asked for, stating that they were grateful to them for everything they'd done for the village.

* * *

><p>Midday quickly came and went, and noon came. There were about four hours left until sunset, and Hiccup and Astrid were sitting astride their dragons, saying their goodbyes to the Vikings around them.<p>

"Stay safe out there, Hiccup, Rider of Legends." Ralbert said, locking wrists with Hiccup.

"Don't forget, you're going to Berk soon. So say hi to your uncle for me." Hiccup spoke, referring to the 'team' that was to be sent to Berk to ask for assistance with dragons.

"Oh I will!"

The dragons took to the wing soon after, flying out of sight within minutes. The coastline began to rise when they were out of the village, and soon, they were flying beside a large rock wall. About an hour after leaving Torp, Hiccup spotted the first break in the cliff side, in the form of a large cove. The cove was about a mile across, large enough for the entire Berk fleet. Around the cove were hundreds of caves in the walls. The sea flowed into the bottom caves, making it perfect for the two dragons that were known to reside there; the Scauldren and the Thunderdrum.

They made camp on the top of the northernmost sea cliffs, leaving a respectful distance between themselves and the dragons.

"So, I guess we'll meet the dragons tomorrow." Hiccup said as they sat around the fire, watching the sunset over the ocean.

"Yeah." Astrid answered, leaning against his shoulder.

* * *

><p>Berk, a few days ago:<p>

Loki's wings flapped one last time as they landed in the center of Berk. Villagers stared at them from all around. Balder slid off of Loki, rubbing his sore rear. A large, red-bearded Viking came over to him, eying the dragon carefully. Loki quickly scanned his mind and informed Balder of who he was.

"Stranger, welcome to Berk, I am-"

"Stoick the Vast, father of Hiccup the Rider of the Legendary Night Fury, Toothless." Balder spoke. Stoick looked confused for a moment before Balder spoke again. "I am Balder, friend of the Whispering Deaths. I met your son a while ago on his journey. He gave me a letter for you…somewhere…"

Balder pulled the pack he was wearing off, fumbling around for a moment before finding the letter Hiccup had given him. He handed it to Stoick, who recognized the skull drawn on the outside of the paper. He read it quickly, focusing on the part regarding the man and dragons in front of him.

"Ah, I see. Then I would like to truly welcome you to Berk." Stoick said, extending his hand to Balder.

* * *

><p>Far to West of Berk, Current Day<p>

The giant dragon opened one of its eyes. Its sleep had been long and peaceful. It had been a short sleep by the stretch of it's kind, only lasting several decades, but it had been a good sleep. Then its other five eyes flew open.

It sensed a disturbance. Where it's kin had once ruled, there was not a trace. It sensed many lesser dragons, but not it's kin. It was the perfect opportunity. It would take a few months to prepare and a week or two to get there, but well worth the trip…to gain the horde of minions that it sensed would be great indeed. It slowly began to rise, preparing to hunt so it could begin It's species two month long sleep recovery process and prepare to take its missing kin's minions.

* * *

><p>AUTHOR'S NOTES:<p>

* * *

><p>Alright ladies and gentlemens...here's Chapter 10...which is sadly lacking in the tradition of introducing new dragons, or learning about new dragons...unless you count that one at the very end...I wonder what kind of dragon that could be. Anyways, please leave a review or PM...I love feedback! One might even say I'm a feedback whore! Also, please keep in mind when you PM or Review, that this story is already finished, I'm just fixing it up before posting it. And as always, hope you enjoyed!<p> 


End file.
